Desperate plea from UCSB rape victim’s parents as attacker roams free

The parents of a University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) student who was allegedly raped and strangled near campus are making a desperate public plea for authorities to bring in outside help as the suspect remains at large days after the horrifying attack.

The family, through their attorney, is urging school officials to ask the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department to assist in the investigation into the alleged assault, which has shaken the campus community at UCSB.

“We are pleading with the chancellor please request the Santa Barbara Sheriffs Department to help with this investigation to apprehend this person,” family attorney Tyrone Maho said in a statement provided on behalf of the victim’s parents to a local TV outlet KEYT.

Maho said the family believes university police are taking the case seriously, but argued that a larger agency with more resources should now be involved.

“I do believe they truely want want to find this person we’re just asking that they get assistance,” he said. “That is a department that is bigger and more capable and has the experience to do so.”

The renewed calls for action come after students at UCSB were alerted May 10 about a reported “rape and strangulation” that allegedly occurred on campus property around 10 p.m.

According to previous reporting, the victim and suspect met earlier that evening at a party in Isla Vista, the college town adjacent to the university, and did not know each other before the incident.

The family’s private investigator, Michael Claytor, is also encouraging anyone who may have seen suspicious activity that night to come forward, even if they believe the information is minor.

“Remember it might be enough to say I saw this and they can then put the pieces together themselves they are not going to need to use you to testify,” Claytor said. “Give them what is important and let them do the rest.”

In a statement, the UC Police Department defended its handling of the investigation while citing privacy restrictions that prevent officials from discussing specific details publicly.

“Federal law and university policy prevent us from discussing specifics of a case, but the campus has robust resources that are available to support survivors of sexual violence,” the department said.

The department added that reports of crimes on university property “are fully investigated by sworn officers of the UCPD” and noted that the agency is “P.O.S.T. certified and accredited,” including by the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.

The suspect has not been publicly identified, fueling anxiety among students already rattled by the violent nature of the alleged crime.

“I feel safe in my dorm, because I’ve never had any issues there, but because I’m always out with my friends in IV, that feels a little sketchy,” student Adora Mina previously told local outlet KSBY.

“‘Rape and strangulation’ on a university campus — so I checked the email, and they released no other information on who he was,” she added.

Officials also said campus police “work closely with the Sheriff’s Office and the Santa Barbara District Attorney’s Office as appropriate” and stressed that the case “is currently under active investigation.”

According to the university police statement, investigators have been in contact with the victim’s family “from the early stages of the investigation,” and university officials said they have responded multiple times to an attorney representing the student and her parents.

The alleged attack has reignited concerns about campus safety at UCSB, which was recently ranked the No. 1 party school in the nation. The Daily Nexus, the campus newspaper, previously reported that incidents involving rape, dating violence and stalking have risen since 2022.

Meanwhile, university officials continue urging students and anyone with information about the alleged assault to contact investigators.

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