Elderly resident attacked in alley

An assault that resulted in serious injuries Sunday near Franklin Street has left one man in the hospital.

A man in his 60s was sexually assaulted in an alley behind the 100 block of Franklin Street, said Chapel Hill Police spokeswoman Jane Cousins.

Cousins said the man was walking downtown when he was jumped by five men.

The incident occurred in the alley behind 137 E. Franklin St., police reports state.

According to reports, the incident occurred between 5:45 and 6 p.m. — daylight hours — Sunday.

He told police that his attackers were five black men who were all about 19 or 20 years of age.

They were all wearing white T-shirts and red scarves, Cousins said.

The victim was sodomized by a plastic object, and after the attack, the men left the scene, she said.

The man went to a pay phone on Franklin Street and called the police, Cousins said, and he was taken to UNC Hospitals for treatment.

Cousins said Tuesday that the victim was still in the hospital, and investigators had talked with him about the case.

The case is still being investigated, and police are looking into the possibility of the attack being gang-related, she said.

“The clothing that they were wearing looks as if it could be gang,” she said, “but we just don’t know at this point.”

Cousins said that previously there has not been an assault of this nature in Chapel Hill.

Anyone with information about the assault or the suspects in the crime can call Chapel Hill Police Department at 968-2760 or CrimeStoppers at 942-7515.

Those who provide information leading to an arrest might be eligible for a reward up to $1,200, Cousins said.

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.