An unidentified man called three female University students early yesterday morning, claiming to be a representative of the Honor Committee and asking them to meet with him, according to Honor Committee officials.
Committee Chairman Thomas Hall said the call recipients told him the man spoke with an "unidentified foreign accent" and would only give the name "Jack." The caller refused to provide any other personal information to the students.
Hall said the caller allegedly told the recipients they were facing honor charges and should meet him at either Espresso Corner or Espresso Royale Caffe on University Avenue.
One recipient said she received a call around 1:15 a.m. and was told she was under investigation for cheating.
She said the caller asked her to meet him at Espresso Corner coffee shop to discuss the specifics of her case. She learned the charges were fraudulent after calling the honor office to verify them.
Vice Chairwoman for Investigations Ginny Rothscild said actual honor advisors call charged students and provide them with all relevant information.
The advisor "wouldn't call in the middle of the night," Rothschild said. "The person would definitely identify themselves."
She said proper procedures require that the advisor identify him or herself by full name and provide his or her phone number and e-mail address, suggest a meeting time and place, briefly describe the case against the individual and give the name of the case's initiator.
Hall said the false calls "should upset the community as a whole" and the Committee is urging students to report any such incidents.
He said it is particularly unfortunate that the events are occurring so close to the end of the semester, since students face especially large amounts of academic work and find themselves under a great deal of pressure.
"It's a really terrible thing ... everybody's under enough stress anyway," he added.
University Police currently are investigating the incident, but Sgt. Tom Durrer said a report has not yet been completed.
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