10 Face Arrest for Postgame Rioting

Police are still searching for the fans who vandalized two parked cars during a celebration on Franklin Street after North Carolina's 85-83 victory against Duke on Feb. 1. One of the vehicles was overturned and sustained severe damage.

Police used photographs and eyewitness testimony to identify the suspects, whose names are being withheld pending their arrest.

Chapel Hill Police Chief Gregg Jarvies said no arrests have been made, but that police have several names and faces of people who could be responsible. Those responsible for the incident will be charged with the felony of engaging in a riot and sentencing could include jail time.

Jarvies said some of the information has come from people who called the police and Chapel Hill-Carrboro CrimeStoppers to report names of people who they know were involved.

Chapel Hill police also are using tapes from WRAL television that captured the incident to pinpoint suspects. Jarvies said police obtained the tape from WRAL with a court order and are making still photographs from the tape to identify those responsible. The police also are studying photographs submitted by bystanders.

Jarvies said he believes up to two dozen people were involved in the incident. He also said the police hope to identify about half of them from the photographs and the submitted names.

"We have about two to three names with no faces and three to five photos identified with names," he said. "But we also still have many faces with no names."

Jarvies said suspects would be brought in for questioning and prosecution as early as Wednesday. "Right now, we are continuing to watch the tapes and use technology to try to improve the quality of the still pictures," he said.

The police will seek the help of the town and the University community in identifying those who are responsible.

"We will release the photographs to the public in the form of fliers, through CrimeStoppers, campus police and several media outlets," Jarvies said. "We have already had people who are disgusted with what happened come forward so that those responsible for the crime will be held responsible."

Although several of those identified are students, the suspects are not limited to the University community. "We are releasing the information over a broad part of North Carolina," Jarvies said. "We cannot assume that all who were involved were UNC students."

UNC Student Attorney General Taylor Lea said that Honor Court charges would be most likely brought up against the students who were involved. "Students could face sanctions such as suspension, probation or community service," Lea said. "The Honor Court will address anything that affects the University."

Jarvies said the videotape also has shown bystanders who were trying to pull people away from the car and turn the car back on its wheels. He also said that although the police would like to identify those people and commend them, it is the officials' primary goal to find the people who damaged the car.

The City Editor can be reached

at citydesk@unc.edu.