Copycat ‘Georgetown Cuddler’ Break-ins Return

Two Georgetown University students were awakened by unknown intruders early Saturday morning, April 9, in their dormitory rooms at the large LXR complex on 35th Street and on N Street. In two separate incidents, one female student woke to find a male stranger next to her; another women woke to a stranger shaking her shoulder and saw him run out of the room. No one was harmed and nothing was stolen. (The main entrance to Loyola Hall is at the middle of 35th Street and locks automatically.)

Here are excerpts from the two crime alerts by the University’s Department of Public Safety, which terms these incidents as burglaries:

“On Saturday, April 9, at 4:30 a.m., a Georgetown student woke to find a male laying in bed next to her. The student screamed, at which time the male suspect fled the room. A male subject matching the description was seen running through the courtyard, climbing the fence, and fleeing west on Prospect Street toward campus. DPS searched the area with negative results. The Metropolitan Police Department was notified and responded to investigate. Witness description of suspect(s): South Asian male, approximately 6 feet tall, short black hair, medium build, wearing a black sweater with collared shirt and tan pants.”

“A Georgetown student reported that on April 9, at 3:30 a.m., she was sleeping when someone shook her awake by the shoulder. When she turned to see who it was, she saw an unknown male exit her room. A roommate who was downstairs saw the suspect flee and exit the front door. Witness description of suspect(s): White male with freckles, approximately 6 feet tall, medium build, wearing a dark crew shirt, a striped maroon sweater and tan pants.”

The Department of Public Safety is requesting that anyone with information for these incidents call 202-687-4343.

Only two weeks ago, Georgetown University announced that it would be installing security cameras at the entrances and exits of its residence halls. “Cameras will be aimed at entrances and exits and not at student rooms,” the school’s housing services office emphasized.

The nickname, “Georgetown Cuddler,” while criticized as downplaying the threatening incidents, has been used for several years to mark several crimes of a varying nature.

In March 2010, the Washington Post reported: “An Arlington man who was dubbed the ‘Georgetown Cuddler’ was sentenced Friday to more than 26 years in prison for burglary and assaults on five male Georgetown University students. D.C. Superior Court Judge Gregory E. Jackson sentenced Todd M. Thomas, 24, to prison for burglarizing the homes and assaulting the students between 2007 and 2008. The victims said they awoke in the middle of the night to find Thomas in their apartments. At times, Thomas was massaging or groping the victim’s shoulders and ankles. Another time, Thomas sexually assaulted one of the victims. The attacks occurred in the 1200 and 1300 blocks of 33rd and 35th streets N.W.”

At the time of the 2010 report, the MPD was still searching for a suspect or suspects who were targeting women at or near Georgetown University, and then reports of such incidents tapered off—until last weekend.