A group attack on campus left a female DCU student injured and her male friend with a broken nose, broken teeth and a fractured eye socket.
Four males and two females aged between 17 and 19 approached and attacked the pair near the Ballymun entrance to DCU, approximately 100m from the Sports Centre, at 8.30pm last Saturday.
DCU security noticed the assault on their CCTV monitors and drove to the scene, causing the attackers to flee.
Five members of the group were arrested on Saturday, while a sixth was arrested on Sunday. All six are from the Ballymun and Finglas area and are not students in DCU. The group is reported to have been on drugs at the time of the attack.
The attack appears to have been unprovoked and no theft was attempted. A source described the incident to The College View as a “random act of violence, unprecedented on the DCU campus”.
In an email circulated to all DCU students and staff regarding the incident, Director of Student Support & Development Dr Claire Bohan asked students to “stay together in groups at all times if walking around after dark in any part of the city – and to consider sharing the price of a taxi to get you safely from A to B”.
She continued: “We hope that this was an isolated incident but would advise students to be extra vigilant, ensure to walk in groups at night and have the 24/7 Campus Security Number (7005999) in their mobile phones, should help be required at any time.”
The victims cannot be named. The case will be going to court in the coming weeks.
By Aoife Mullen
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