URBANA – In the wake of four attacks on women on or near the University of Illinois campus in the last week, police are urging people to report crimes quickly and take precautions to avoid being a target.

"Don't walk by yourself at night, especially late at night. Be aware of your surroundings; walk in well-lit areas. Ride the bus or take advantage of Safe Rides. Get a cab. Go home earlier," said Champaign police Sgt. Jim Rein, repeating warnings he's issued countless times.

Adds Urbana police Lt. Bryant Seraphin: "Clearly if people have been out drinking and their senses aren't where they need to be, please don't walk home alone in the middle of the night."

Two of the four recent victims had consumed alcohol.

Crimes under investigation in the order they happened:

– A sexual assault on a woman walking alone in the 1200 block of West Nevada Street in Urbana, about 3 a.m. March 12.

– A home invasion and attempted sexual assault on a woman inside her apartment in the 700 block of South Randolph Street in Champaign about 10 p.m. March 12.

– An attack on a woman inside the Music Building, 1114 W. Nevada St., U, about 11:30 p.m. March 13.

– An attack on a woman as she tried to enter her apartment in the 400 block of East Healey Street in Champaign about 2:15 a.m. Friday.

"We are definitely looking to see if they are connected," UI police Lt. Roy Acree said. His officers are the primary investigators of the Music Building attack and are assisting Urbana police on the Nevada Street rape.

Rein said the officers are looking at a "lot of similarities" in the attacks, including that the victims are all in their early 20s, they were alone, approached from behind, and the attacks were committed in the late night or early morning hours by a black man.

Rein said the 21-year-old woman attacked on East Healey Street early Friday had been drinking at a campus bar with friends and walked with them until getting about two blocks from her apartment, then she continued home alone.

As she opened the door to her apartment, the attacker, who was armed with a large kitchen knife, hit her from behind. She fell to her knees and he continued to beat her around the face. She needed medical treatment, Rein said.

Rein said the woman's roommate and her boyfriend heard the commotion and scared off the attacker. They and police scoured the area but couldn't find him.

He was described as being 30 to 35, about 5 feet 10 inches tall, 170 pounds with short hair. He was wearing a tan baseball hat, dark shirt, dark jacket and blue jeans.

The South Randolph Street attack was different from the others in that the woman was inside her basement apartment alone when she was surprised.

"She had been home for a while, getting ready to go out and discovered the guy in the house. She didn't hear him come in," said Champaign Detective Pat Kelly.

The man forced her to the floor, threatened that he would kill her if she looked at him, and implied he had a gun although she never saw one. The woman was not seriously physically injured, Kelly said.

The attacker was described as being 25 to 35, about 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall, 180 to 200 pounds.

The woman in the Music Building was attacked as she carried a cello. She was not hurt because she was able to get the better of her attacker.

"She was up on the fifth floor by herself between 11:30 and midnight Saturday night. She was apparently going to practice. This person came out from behind a stairwell door, behind her, and grabbed her around the neck. She's got a black belt in tae kwon do and was able to elbow him and do a back kick. At that point, the suspect had enough and ran away," Acree said.

"We do not know what his intent was. She was not injured. We do not know if he was injured."

Acree said the woman didn't report it to police until Monday.

"It's very important to call us (immediately) because the sooner we catch wind that a crime has occurred, the better chance we have of catching the suspect," Acree said. "If we would have known, we would have had three or four squads in the area immediately looking for this person."

Because she was grabbed from behind, the woman didn't get a good look but said her attacker was wearing a baggy white hooded sweatshirt pulled over a baseball hat and baggy dark blue jeans. She said his hand, which appeared to be that of a black man, had large fingers with a shiny silver ring on his left hand ring finger. He smelled of alcohol.

In the rape case, a 20-year-old woman was walking alone about 3 a.m. in the 1200 block of West Nevada Street when she paused to cross Goodwin Avenue. A man tapped her on the shoulder, forced her behind a nearby building, sexually assaulted her and ran off.

She told police he was a muscular man with a tattoo on his left arm. He had a dark complexion and was last seen wearing a dark sweatshirt and a necklace described as a wire-wrapped cross.

Acree said in any kind of crime, call police immediately.

"With spring break coming, there are going to be less students on campus. A lot of people feel safer, but for the same reason it makes them an easier target," Acree said.

If you're walking by yourself late at night, you may be the only person around in a three-square block area. Pay attention to what's going on, stay off your cell phone, keep the iPods out of your ears, and if something doesn't feel right, call the police," Acree said.

Going away on break? Take precautions

Champaign police remind people leaving town for spring break to take the following precautions to protect their property:

— Take laptop computers, MP3 and CD players out of your residence.

—Make sure all windows and doors in your home, garage and vehicles are locked.

—If you subscribe to an alarm service, alert the company that you will be gone and if someone is minding your house.

—Never leave a telephone message on your answering machine saying you’re out of town or on vacation.

—Put lights and radios on timers throughout the house.

— Take checkbooks, credits cards, identification and small valuables with you if possible or store them in a safe location outside of the home.

— Document serial numbers of valuable items and store the list in a fire-proof cabinet.

— Put a hold on your newspaper and mail or ask someone to retrieve them for you.

— Should you be the victim of a burglary, contact police immediately and don’t touch anything in the area where the burglary occurred. This will reduce the chance of evidence being destroyed.