STARKVILLE — A continuing investigation by the Mississippi State University Police Department has determined that a campus crime reported earlier this week by a male student was false.
As a result, the unnamed student now is being charged with filing a false police report, said Thomas Bourgeois, the university”s dean of students.
The student told investigators that Friday night at about 10 p.m., two black males accosted him on East Lee Boulevard near Cobb Institute of Archaeology. After saying one of them had a knife, the assailants walked the student to their vehicle near Critz residence hall, he told police. After forcing the student inside their vehicle, the men robbed him and then dropped him off near apartments on Locksley Way, he said.
The student described the assailants as two black men, one with a large build and the other with a small build.
If convicted of filing a false police report, the student faces a fine of up to $1,000 and one year in prison.
“Filing a false report is a serious charge,” Bourgeois said.
He said false reports are dangerous to the general campus population because they unnecessarily can divert valuable police resources, among other reasons.
“We treat false reports as seriously as we treat crime reports,” Bourgeois said.
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