A male student walking home from Centennial Hall with a friend was attacked by four men late Oct. 12.

At approximately 11:40 p.m., the attackers began slapping and punching the student near the Code Blue emergency telephone between Centennial and Frontier halls, police said.

Two of the attackers held the victim’s friend back and told him, “This is between them,” according to the police report.

The victim and the primary aggressor in the incident knew each other and there was a pre-existing conflict between them, University police Lt. Chuck Miner said.

“This is a revenge-type thing,” he said.

Eventually, the victim and his friend were able to escape from the group of attackers and fled into Frontier Hall to call police, according to the report.

The victim suffered a swollen lip and a loose tooth, police said.

At the request of the victim, no arrests were made and no charges will be filed against the attacker.

Officer punches suspect

While handing out citations for minor consumption of alcohol early Saturday, officers on party patrol were confronted by an unruly arrestee.

After handing out the citations at a large party on 21st Avenue Southeast, officers told everyone to leave, police said.

One of the cited minors was instructed to leave several times but kept returning to the scene, cursing and swearing at officers, according to the police report.

Officers decided to arrest the man for disorderly conduct and obstruction of the legal process but, instead of complying, the man “took a fighting stance and took a swing at an officer,” the report stated.

Police said the officer countered with a punch of his own, striking the suspect in the head.

Minneapolis police Lt. Greg Reinhardt said police have the right to defend themselves against suspects.

“If somebody is aggressive towards an officer Ö he can take reasonable steps to protect himself,” he said. “The guy threw a punch at the cop. The cop threw one back.”

The suspect was taken into custody and booked at Hennepin County Jail.

Cookie thief

A man looking to score some free chips and cookies from Jimmy John’s was thwarted by the store’s manager late Monday.

At approximately 11:15 p.m., a man entered the sandwich shop on 14th Avenue Southeast and tried to steal chips and cookies, said store manager Robert Mulligan.

When the manager on duty confronted him, the man said he had a gun, but no weapon was seen, Reinhardt said.

The manager chased the would-be thief out of the store but was unable to catch him, Mulligan said.