President Martin issued the following statement to the Drake University community shortly before 9 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2016:
Dear friends, colleagues and students,
As many of you have likely heard by now, two local police officers were killed overnight by gunfire. One was a Des Moines officer and the other was from Urbandale. Our thoughts are with the officers’ loved ones, their law enforcement colleagues and any of you who may have friends or family members in the line of duty.
We were notified immediately of the shootings last night, and we have been monitoring and staying in close contact with law enforcement. The campus community was never considered to be at risk given the location of the shootings and that is why a Bulldog Alert was not issued. Drake Public Safety has stepped up its patrol and presence around campus, and will continue to do so.
The police have identified a suspect and an active search is underway. We are hopeful he will be apprehended soon.
Sincerely,
Marty Martin
President
Drake University