APU campus safety and the Azusa Police Department continue to investigate racial slurs found written on walls of two common areas in the Trinity freshman dormitory.

“The investigation has yet to yield any leads,” said Chief of the Department of Campus Safety Terry Meyer.

The acts of vandalism occurred at a significant time for APU, following one of the most high-traffic weekends on campus. The weekend of March 19 included the Night of Champions, a youth outreach event in which teenage Christian athletes are invited from all over Southern California, as well as a preview weekend where prospective students from diverse locations come to stay in the dorms.

The busy weekend, in conjunction with the lack of cameras in these common areas, has made for a difficult investigation with weight placed on interviews.

“Two detectives from the Azusa Police Department came out and conducted interviews,” Meyer said.

According to the official call for service, both Campus Safety and the Azusa PD immediately started investigating and interviewing both students and staff regarding the incident.

Lieutenant Mike Bertelson, who oversees the department bureau at the Azusa Police Department, told APU’s Capture that the department will do everything it can to support the university in identifying anyone that may be related to this crime or others that occur on campus.

Chief Meyer has been in constant communication with Lieutenant Bertelsen as well as Trinity Hall’s advisors as the investigation continues.

“We appreciated how Campus Safety got involved right away and partnered with the Azusa Police Department,” Buck Rice, resident advisor in Trinity Hall said.

In a statement addressed to the APU community, sent just days after the derogatory slurs were reported, Chief Meyer said, “There is zero tolerance for such conduct. It violates who we are as a Christian University.”

Also condemning the slurs, Rice said that the community holds each other accountable to create a better community.

The Clause reached out to the Black Student Association and the Student Center for Reconciliation and Diversity regarding the vandalism and to further expand on APU’s conversation about diversity; neither chose to respond.

“At this time, there are no new suspects or witnesses. The investigation is ongoing,” Meyer said.