ISLA VISTA - Over the weekend a woman reported being sexually assaulted in Isla Vista, the fourth reported sexual assault against a female near campus since classes at UC Santa Barbara started in September.
UCSB Police say the latest sexual assault happened at about 1:00am last Saturday morning at a party in a residence along the 800 block of Embarcadero Del Norte.
Police say all they know right now about the suspect is that he's a college-age white male with brown hair who fled the party in an unknown direction.
Police sent out an emergency alert via text and email warning the community about the alleged attack.
Students in IV we spoke with say they think getting the alerts is a good thing, but they're surprised at the crime and accidents that have happened recently.
"Sometimes I am", says UCSB student Kimi Shih, "yeah its kind of scary sometimes."
"I think it's a good thing, it makes you a little bit more cautious", adds UCSB student Emily Stenger.
"Makes me a little nervous too", says UCSB student Naomi Baxter, "freaks me out a little bit sometimes."
The alert system is similar to what other colleges and universities are using to keep students and others informed of emergencies, accidents and crimes in an age of instant information.
And lately there's been a steady stream of alerts since classes started at UCSB in September.
"I'm not really surprised by the sexual assaults especially if girls our age are walking alone at night", says UCSB student Kathy Hu, "I'm more surprised at finding dead bodies, and people getting stabbed and stuff like that, yeah."
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department is investigating this latest sexual assault on Saturday morning.
