Horror in the freshman dorms

Warning: graphic image and details

Last night, two people were stabbed in the Mettler dorms at Rutgers. This account, which contains a graphic image and disturbing details, is the story of the night from inside Mettler. 

At 6:35 last night, my friend Cat texted me, “Legit someone just got jumped in our lobby.”

At first, I laughed because I assumed she was kidding and the people she saw were probably just roughhousing.

Twenty minutes pass, and I’m in my friend Becca’s room, 320 at Mettler, trying to figure out a costume for the night when her twin brother Billy comes running into the room shaking.

He looks terrified, and without saying anything, locks the door behind him.

He tells us that there’s blood everywhere: the lounge, lobby, staircase, outside of Mettler.  He saw one of the victims with his organs coming out.

Unsure of what to do, I leave Becca’s room and go to the third floor lounge where ambulances and patrol cars are stationed with one of the victims on a gurney, pleading “don’t let me die!”

Caution tape then shields everyone inside of Mettler from the outside, and we’re told not to leave and to find a “secure space” because officials have not located the suspect.

I return to Becca’s room and we lock the doors. Five minutes later, we get a call from the first floor RA, Tom, and he tells us that the stabber has returned to his room, which is 315.

Meanwhile, I’m in 320, and I don’t know whether to hide and stay here or run for the hills. It felt as if we were living an episode of “Grey’s Anatomy”.

I was terrified for my life.

At around 7:15, police officers knock on Becca’s door, tell us to evacuate, and that we won’t be returning for up to twelve hours.

A picture taken last night and shared on Snapchat.

At this point, the majority of third floor Mettler residents are in the hallway.

They have barricaded one of the staircases, which has traces of blood, and we’re told that we can’t go to the other staircase because we would have to pass the stabber’s room to get there.

So, we all huddle into an elevator.

Once on the first floor, two cops were standing at the entrance of the lounge, where the victims were stabbed, testing for fingerprints.

Blood stained the doors and floor and trailed off into the outdoors.

Once outside, four cops directed us to past the caution tape, but no one could give anyone answers. Two of them searched through the bushes for the weapon, while the other two refused to disclose any information to us.

The only thing they tell us is that we better find a place to stay for the night.

At 4am, Mettler residents were allowed back in, but were put on lockdown again at around 1 pm for an hour, as police officers and watchdogs scanned the perimeter.

An ongoing investigation continues in room 315.

This afternoon, police said the two victims are in a stable condition in hospital. The suspect, 18-year-old Rutgers student Daniel J. Leandry, 18 , has been charged with attempted murder.

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