Starkville police are looking for a suspect in the Tuesday morning armed robbery of a Mississippi State University student.
The suspect, Fred Lester Doss Jr., 27, is 5 feet, 10 inches tall and is in the 200-plus weight range, Sergeant William Lott of the Starkville Police Department said. Doss is of stocky build and may be wearing removable gold teeth, Lott said.
Doss, a black male, was last seen wearing blue jeans and a sleeveless white undershirt.
Police are not releasing the name of the victim, a female, for safety reasons, Lott said.
The incident occurred between 12:30 a.m. and 12:45 a.m. Tuesday when the suspect allegedly knocked on the student’s door in the Little London apartment complex and got her to open the door on a ruse, he said.
The suspect, who carried a chrome-colored gun, reportedly ordered the woman to remove her clothes, but she refused. He then asked for money and took her debit card, which he has since attempted to use, Lott said.
“Still at gunpoint, he forced her outside and tried to force her to get into the trunk of her vehicle,” he said.
At this point, he said, another car pulled into the parking lot. The student fled across the parking lot, and the suspect fled the scene, he said.
The suspect has not been found at any of his listed addresses, Lott said.
Students who see Doss should call 911 immediately, Lott said. He added: “Do not approach. Do not engage him. He should be considered armed and dangerous.”
Students should not open the door if somebody knocks at an odd hour or if they don’t recognize the voice of the person on the other side, Lott said.
“I know we’re Southerners, and it’s impolite not to be friendly, but it’s not being impolite. It’s being cautious,” he said.
Students should be aware of their surroundings and keep eye contact with strangers, he said. Statistically, he said, “You’re less likely to be a victim if you use eye contact.”
Doss is wanted on charges of burglary of an occupied dwelling, armed robbery, kidnapping and carjacking in connection with the incident, Starkville Police Department officials said in an article printed Thursday in the Starkville Daily News.
According to the 2004 Uniform Crime Report published by the FBI, 146 known burglaries and 11 known robberies occurred in Starkville in 2004. Seven burglaries and one robbery occurred on the MSU campus in 2004, the report said.