Ann Arbor police Chief John Seto told a dozen concerned residents at a neighborhood meeting Wednesday evening that detectives are still investigating a reported incident involving an assault and attempted robbery of a Pioneer High School earlier this month.
Ann Arbor Police Chief John Seto speaks at an Ann Arbor City Council meeting earlier this year.
"There aren't any similar incidents of that type in this area, nor do we believe that there is a pattern in other parts of the city," he said.
Seto said the investigation is still open. "We're still working on it," he said.
The residents all live in the neighborhood near West Stadium Boulevard and Marian Avenue in southwest Ann Arbor where a 17-year-old Pioneer student reported he was attacked May 15 by three men while he was walking home from school.
Seto fielded questions from the neighborhood group, but could not release any more details about the incident other than what had been previously reported.
"I can't comment on any potential leads we're looking into," he said, adding that detectives are exploring all angles.
AnnArbor.com previously reported the 17-year-old told police that three people came up from behind, pushed him to the ground, then struck him multiple times in the head.
The three suspects then attempted to rob him, he said, but the teen didn't have anything to steal. The suspects then fled. The 17-year-old reported the attempted robbery when he arrived home from school, Seto said.
The teen told police he didn't recognize any of the alleged assailants. He described them to police as black males about 19 or 20 years old, all wearing T-shirts. Two of the suspects were wearing baseball hats and shorts. The third was wearing blue jeans, police said.
Trish Koman came to the meeting because her children walk to school in the neighborhood and she would like that to continue.
"This is a really great neighborhood for walking," she said. "It's really safe. My kids walk to school. It would be such a shame if parents got too concerned about this because if you pull back then there's fewer people on the street to keep all the kids safe."
Koman was surprised the incident was reported right on busy West Stadium Boulevard and that nobody stopped.
"That's not the kind of neighborhood we have," she said.
Melissa Reitz's son walks in the neighborhood to catch a shuttle to Community High School.
"I don't want to change anything we're doing," she said. "But it gives you pause."
Anyone with information about the incident is encouraged to call the Ann Arbor police anonymous tip line at 734-794-6939 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK UP (773-2587).
John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.