U student reports rape at Sally’s Saloon

A University of Minnesota student reported being raped last Thursday in a bathroom at Sally’s Saloon and Eatery, according to a police report.
The victim was waiting in line to use the restroom, and the suspect, who was ahead of the victim, invited her to use the male restroom before him, said Don Bye, Sally’s general manager.
The suspect forced his way into the bathroom at around 12:30 a.m. Thursday morning, raped the victim and exited the bathroom in view of witnesses, according to a University crime alert.
There were about five or six people waiting to use each of the single-stalled male and female restrooms, Bye said. The restrooms are now locked and no longer being used, he said.
Nothing like this has ever happened at Sally’s before, Bye said, adding that Wednesday night was very busy at Sally’s. The saloon holds its “Wild Wednesday” promotion each week, where women drink free from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m.
“It’s an extremely isolated incident,” he said. “We’ve been running the same promotion every Wednesday for 17 years.”
The suspect is described as a 23- to 25-year-old white male, about 5-foot-6-inches to 5-foot-8-inches tall, with a medium build and short, blondish-brown hair.
Officers searched the area for the suspect but were unable to find anyone matching the description. The Minneapolis Police Department is investigating the case.
“We don’t have any more details to publicly release at this point,” Sgt. Bill Palmer, an MPD spokesman said.
Anyone with information is asked to call Minneapolis police Sgt. Twila Villella at 612-673-2881.
Man robbed in Como
A 20-year-old man was robbed of his keys last Saturday and was physically assaulted in the Como neighborhood, according to a police report.
“They hit me hard in the back of my head,” Christopher Wright, who is not a University student, said. “I am really upset.”
Wright left a friend’s house at about 2 p.m. and was heading home when two men approached him near the intersection of 21st Avenue and Como Avenue. The suspects told Wright they would stab him if he did not give them his wallet.
The suspects were identified as 19-year-old Ali Jibrell of Maple Grove and 20-year-old Abshir Ali of Columbia Heights.
The two suspects were taken to Hennepin County Juvenile Detention Center and booked for aggravated robbery.
Houses robbed in Como
The garage of two University of Minnesota students was broken into around 2 p.m. last Friday.
One of the student’s car windows was smashed and a wallet was stolen from the car, said Sidd Ramanuj, a University student and one of the robbery victims. The victims had left their garage door open, he said.
University student Keegan Crowther, another victim, had his credit card taken. The suspect spent about $150 on it, Ramanuj said.
The suspect also stole a bicycle from the house.
“We didn’t really have any fear of this happening,” Ramanuj said.