An Ohio State University student was pistol-whipped during an attempted robbery at a Facebook Marketplace meetup on the Columbus campus on Saturday, November 14, and university police are searching for a second suspect, according to a Public Safety Notice issued by the Ohio State University Police Division. The driver of the suspects' vehicle has been detained after police located the vehicle, the notice said.

Source: J News Network (Nov 15)

According to the police division, the student met up with two individuals at about 5 p.m. on November 14 outside the Ohio Union loop, south of the building, for a Facebook Marketplace exchange. The Ohio Union is the university's central student building on its Columbus campus.

Source: Ohio State University Police Division, Public Safety Notice 2026-07 (Nov 14)

Student escaped by rolling out of the moving car

The student entered the suspects' vehicle, where the suspects attempted to rob him, according to the notice. During the incident, the student was pistol-whipped by the second suspect, the passenger in the vehicle, before rolling out of the backseat of the fleeing car, police said.

Source: Ohio State University Police Division, Public Safety Notice 2026-07 (Nov 14)

The student suffered a laceration to his head and was transported to hospital, according to the notice. Police did not release the student's name, and his condition beyond the head injury described in the notice has not been confirmed.

Source: J News Network (Nov 15)

Driver detained, passenger still being sought

Both suspects fled the scene, driving away from campus, police said. Police have since located the vehicle and detained the driver, but officers are still searching for the second suspect, the passenger who allegedly pistol-whipped the student. The university's Department of Public Safety published an image of the second suspect standing near the vehicle.

Source: Ohio State University Police Division, Public Safety Notice 2026-07 (Nov 14)

The allegations in the notice are allegations: no charges or court outcome for the detained driver had been announced in the notice, and the second suspect had not been identified publicly. The investigation is being led by the Ohio State University Police Division, the campus police force for the university.

Source: Ohio State University Police Division, Public Safety Notice 2026-07 (Nov 14)

Why Marketplace meetups carry a known risk

Facebook Marketplace exchanges arranged online and completed in person are a routine part of student life in Columbus, but police departments across the United States regularly warn that meeting a stranger to complete a sale can turn into a robbery, especially when the meeting moves from a public place into a vehicle. The safest practice advised by police is to meet in a public, well-lit place — many departments offer their own station lobbies or marked safe-exchange areas for exactly this purpose — to bring another person, and never to get into a stranger's car.

In this case, according to the notice, the exchange began outside a major campus building in daylight hours, at about 5 p.m. on a Saturday, and the alleged robbery attempt happened only after the student got into the suspects' vehicle. That sequence — a public meeting point, then a move into a car — is the step safety guidance most often warns against.

What happens next

University police say the investigation is active. Officers are working to identify and locate the second suspect, using the image released by the Department of Public Safety, and anyone who recognises the person or the vehicle, or who was near the Ohio Union loop at about 5 p.m. on November 14, is asked to call 614-292-2121. Any charges against the detained driver, and any court dates, will be a matter for Columbus and Franklin County court records as the case moves forward. This report will be updated as the university police release further findings.