Michael Boudewyns was in a second-story skyway of the Carlson School of Management Friday around 1:30 p.m. when he heard screaming from the floor below.
Boudewyns, a construction worker performing maintenance on the building, rushed down the stairs to find two boys standing outside the bathroom.
One of them, a 9-year-old, was cut and bleeding, Boudewyns said. It looked like he had been beaten with a nearby waste basket.
Police originally believed three suspects opened the door of a stall the boy was in and beat him. However, they now think the suspects threw a garbage can over the stall door, University police Lt. Chuck Miner said.
Police are unsure if the suspects knew the boy was in the stall, Miner said.
“This may not have been an intentional act to hurt somebody,” he said.
If the suspects did not know the boy was in the stall, they could still be charged with assault, Miner said. However, the severity of the charge could be reduced, he said.
University police Chief Greg Hestness said the victim was in town with his father, who was attending a conference at Carlson. Nothing was taken from the boy.
After finding the victim, Boudewyns chased the suspects, who were running from the building into an off-campus furniture store. They escaped around the 400 block of Cedar Avenue South.
An ambulance took the victim to the University Medical Center, Fairview to be treated for head injuries.
Miner said he was not sure how serious the injuries were, but he said the boy’s condition “has improved” since the incident.
No University cameras captured footage of the suspects, Hestness said, so University police will look to off-campus surveillance to identify them.
University police sent a Public Safety Alert to community members Friday evening.
Boudewyns said though he only saw the suspects from behind, they looked to be about 17 to 18 years old.
According to the alert, all three suspects are black males. They have an average height of 5 feet, 8 inches and all have medium builds.
On Friday, one of the suspects was wearing a white T-shirt. Another was wearing a red or maroon checkered shirt. The third was wearing a blue and white striped shirt.
Illegal Fireworks Confiscated from Fraternity
A report of shots fired near campus early Saturday morning led police to confiscate more than 600 firework devices from a University fraternity, most of which were illegal.
University police arrived at the Delta Chi fraternity near the corner of University and 16th avenues southeast around 4:45 a.m. to find so much smoke billowing from inside the house that it appeared to be on fire, Miner said .
A man then came to a second-story window and threw a firecracker in the direction of police, Miner said.
Police entered the house to find rooms full of smoke, though no alarms were sounding, he said.
Police confiscated 515 bottle rockets, 66 firecrackers and 53 smoke bombs from the house, Miner said.
Though no one will be charged, University police informed the Interfraternity Council of the incident, according to the police report.
University police also recommended the Minneapolis Fire Department inspect the fraternity for possible fire code violations, according to the report.
Theft at the Fringe
After performing in a children’s play in the Fringe Festival Saturday evening , three actresses returned to the dressing room in Rarig Center to find some of their property stolen.
Katrina Zahradka , a University theater major who was in the play, said she and two other actresses had their wallets taken. A camera and expensive purse were also missing.
University police searched the premises for the merchandise, but failed to find anything, according to the police report.
Zahradka said her bank statement showed some charges made to her credit card in the Cedar-Riverside area Saturday night.
Miner said theft in Rarig Center is uncommon. There are no leads or suspects at this point.