Officials are investigating a sexual assault Heidelberg College security reported to Tiffin Police. The incident occurred Thursday night and was reported Friday afternoon, according to a police report.
Tiffin Police Sgt. Mike Marquis said the incident involved a female student.
Heidelberg Dean of Students Dustin Brentlinger said the incident also involved a male student and occurred in a residence hall.
"Both us and the police are in the middle of investigating whether it happened or not," he said. "We're getting two sides of a story, of course, and we have not fully interviewed everyone that may have information."
Jim Troha, Heidelberg's interim president, said college officials are investigating what their next steps will be.
"We've met with the alleged perpetrator and the alleged victim, and we'll follow our protocol with dealing with this (incident)," he said Saturday evening.
Troha said Heidelberg sent an e-mail containing safety tips to the campus community and to let people know about the rape that occurred earlier in the week at Hedges-Boyer Park.
"We felt like we needed to let our campus know that that had occurred," he said.
In the e-mail, Brentlinger encouraged students to be aware of their environment, stay in well-lit areas that are not isolated, be cautious about the people they allow into their residence halls or vehicles, walk with others or get a security escort and understand the use of alcohol or other substances often is a contributing factor to sexual or other physical assaults.
Marquis said the Heidelberg sexual assault, which is currently under investigation by the detective bureau, had no connection to the rape that occurred Monday night at Hedges-Boyer Park where a Sycamore woman was approached by an unknown man as she was walking back to her vehicle.
The woman reported the incident Thursday afternoon and said the man raped her by the amphitheater at Hedges-Boyer Park, Tiffin Police Chief Dave LaGrange said Friday.
She described him as between 6-foot and 6-feet 2-inches tall and between 200 and 250 pounds.
She also said he had tanned, dark-colored hands and a scruffy beard.
LaGrange said Friday the rape remained under investigation.
Marquis said another rape occurred in Tiffin about three weeks ago, but he did not have further details.
Staff Writer Jill Gosche contributed to this report.
