A member of the University of Chicago community was robbed at approximately 11:30 a.m. today on the sidewalk in front of the William Eckhardt Research Center at East 56th Street and South Ellis Avenue, according to a security alert emailed to the University community this afternoon.

The victim was approached by two unknown suspects armed with handguns, who demanded and took property before fleeing the scene in a dark blue Honda Accord southbound on Ellis, Associate Vice President for Safety and Security Eric M. Heath wrote in the security alert. The vehicle had a temporary Illinois license plate 728AC769.

The victim reported no physical injuries and University of Chicago Police Department is investigating the incident, according to the email.

The incident took place across the street from Max Palevsky Residential Commons West and the Joe and Rika Mansueto Library. There was no commotion in the Mansueto Library at the time of the event, according to third-year Alison Lafayette, who was working in the library at the time. As of 1:30 p.m., there was no security or police presence at the scene.

This is the first on-campus robbery this academic year, according to Clery Act reports emailed to University members. There were three robberies during the 2024–25 academic year. As an institution participating in federal financial aid programs, the University is mandated to report certain crimes under the Clery Act if they happen within campus boundaries.

Since the U.S. Department of Education began collecting data in 2001, as per the Clery Act, UChicago has averaged about one on-campus robbery per year.

The national average of on-campus robberies among all four-year public and private institutions has declined steadily over the past two decades, falling by 71 percent from 0.7 in 2001 to 0.2 in 2023, the latest year for which data is available.