Campus Alert Archive
ODU

Five Suspects Forced Their Way Into a Dominion House Dorm Room at Gunpoint, All Were Eventually Arrested

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VAburglarytimely warningmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

Around 9 p.m. on Tuesday, February 26, 2019, multiple people, at least one armed with a handgun, forced their way into a Dominion House dorm room that the residents knew, according to Old Dominion University Police, who issued a Clery Act alert the next day. No one was hurt, but ODU police increased patrols in the residential area. Five people, all in their late teens, were ultimately arrested and charged with burglary and related firearm and abduction offenses.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Old Dominion University
Public R1 · VA
~24,000 studentsODU Urgent Alert
Official alert policy
Read when and how ODU says it will use ODU Alert — summarized, quoted, and analyzed.
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from WTKR's and 13News Now's reporting on the ODU Police timely warning issued February 27, 2019464 chars
ODU ALERT - TIMELY WARNING: On Tuesday, February 26, 2019, at approximately 9:00 p.m., multiple individuals, at least one armed with a handgun, forced their way into a residence hall room at Dominion House. The individuals were known to the residents of the room. No injuries were reported. This is an ongoing investigation. ODU Police have increased patrols in the residential area. If you have information about this incident, contact ODU Police at 757-683-4000.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

WTKR reported ODU issued the alert on February 27, one day after the incident occurred at approximately 9:00 p.m. on February 26 at Dominion House
The 'known to the residents' detail, reported by 13News Now, is a common pattern in campus armed burglaries: acquaintance-based entry rather than a stranger forcing open a locked, unfamiliar door
Dominion House is one of ODU's on-campus residence halls; increased patrols were the university's immediate mitigation while the investigation was ongoing
FOLLOW-UPEmail
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from 13News Now's and WAVY's reporting on the five arrests and subsequent charges420 chars
ODU ALERT UPDATE: ODU Police have arrested five individuals in connection with the February 26 armed burglary at Dominion House. All five face charges including burglary, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and conspiracy to commit burglary; some face additional abduction and weapons charges. None of the suspects were ODU students. ODU Police thank the community for its assistance with this investigation.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

13News Now listed the five suspects as Kaleb Corsey, Amiel Torrence, Asia Starks, Kiana Garber, and Zion Battle, all 18 or 19 and all from Norfolk, none of whom were ODU students
Torrence, Garber, and Battle each also faced an abduction charge in addition to burglary and firearm counts, reflecting that the room's residents were held against their will during the incident
WAVY's later coverage of the case's court proceedings reported at least one defendant was sentenced to five years and three months in prison
Context

Background

Old Dominion University is a public research university in Norfolk, Virginia. Around 9 p.m. on Tuesday, February 26, 2019, multiple individuals, at least one armed with a handgun, forced their way into a room at Dominion House, an on-campus residence hall; ODU Police said the intruders were known to the residents of the room and that no one was injured. ODU issued a Clery Act timely warning the following day and increased patrols in the residential area while the investigation continued. 13News Now reported that within roughly a week, ODU Police and local investigators identified and arrested five suspects, all 18 or 19 years old and from Norfolk, none of them ODU students: Kaleb Corsey, Amiel Torrence, Asia Starks, Kiana Garber, and Zion Battle. All five faced burglary, firearm, and conspiracy charges, and three also faced abduction charges reflecting that the room's occupants were held against their will during the break-in. WAVY's later court coverage reported at least one defendant was ultimately sentenced to more than five years in prison. The case illustrates a distinct category of campus burglary: not an anonymous property crime but an armed, acquaintance-based home invasion carried out by non-students against residents they knew, with charges escalating well beyond simple burglary once a firearm and detention of the victims were involved.
Analysis

Key Findings

Multiple individuals, at least one armed with a handgun, forced their way into an occupied Dominion House dorm room at approximately 9:00 p.m. on February 26, 2019
The intruders were reportedly known to the residents of the room, an acquaintance-based pattern distinct from a random stranger break-in
All five arrested suspects were 18 or 19-year-old Norfolk residents; none were ODU students
Three of the five suspects faced an additional abduction charge, reflecting that the residents were held against their will during the incident
At least one defendant was later sentenced to more than five years in prison, illustrating the serious criminal exposure that follows an armed campus burglary even when no one is physically injured
Outcome
Five suspects, Kaleb Corsey (18), Amiel Torrence (18), Asia Starks (19), Kiana Garber (18), and Zion Battle (19), all of Norfolk, were arrested and charged with burglary, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and conspiracy to commit burglary; several also faced abduction and concealed-weapon charges. No one was injured. One defendant was later sentenced to five years and three months in prison in connection with the case.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    ODU Police investigating after on-campus armed burglary
    wtkr.com
    archived copy
  2. News
    Police arrest five after people with gun burglarize Old Dominion University dorm room
    13newsnow.com
    archived copy
  3. News
    ODU Police arrest five people in connection with on-campus armed burglary
    wtkr.com
    archived copy
  4. News
    Suspects connected to 2019 armed robbery at ODU on-campus residence hall go to court
    wavy.com
    archived copy
  5. News
    Man in 2019 armed robbery on-campus at ODU sentenced to 5 years 3 months
    wavy.com
    archived copy
Cite this case

Campus Alert Archive. "Old Dominion University: Five Suspects Forced Their Way Into a Dominion House Dorm Room at Gunpoint, All Were Eventually Arrested." Incident of February 26, 2019. Added July 2026. https://campusalertarchive.com/case/old-dominion-university-dominion-house-armed-burglary-2019-02-26/

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Alert text quoted on this page remains the work of the issuing institution; the archive is a secondary source.

Tags
burglaryarmedresidence-hallabductionvirginiapublic-r12010ssuspect-arrestedfirearmnon-student-perpetrator
Added July 2026Updated July 2026Via ingestion