Police received no complaints of country-rap salespeople attacking students
City and campus police said they received no complaints about students being chased by men from a country-rap artist's sales van.
"Reports of aggressive solicitors attacking students on CMU's campus have been circulating on social media," the Department of Public Safety posted on Facebook. "However, no official complaints have been filed with the Mt. Pleasant Police Department."
Radio station 97.5 Lansing posted a story Wednesday saying senior Alisha Starr had emailed them claiming she saw two women chased by men attempting to sell CDs of country rap artist Mikel Knight. The story said authorities were contacted and the women were warned the van was a front for human trafficking.
Officer Jeff Browne of the Mount Pleasant Police Department said city police and the Isabella County Sheriff's Department responded to incidents of trespassing Monday by the salesmen at several locations, including Walmart, Dunham's and Speedway. The group had been trying to sell goods in the parking lot. Police were called when they refused to leave.
Browne said there was no indication the group was involved in human trafficking.
Starr said in an email she did not witness the alleged incident as the story claimed, and one of the women chased was her roommate's sister. When asked what authorities were contacted and where the incident occurred, she did not reply.
Browne said he received multiple calls Thursday from media and citizens asking about the alleged attacks and criticizing the department for not taking human trafficking seriously.
Browne said as far as police were aware, the van had not been in town since last Monday.
