Mom of Greece Athena grad who was robbed and beaten in Buffalo says: "He's afraid"

Posted at: 09/03/2012 12:30 PM | Updated at: 09/03/2012 11:15 PM
By: Amanda Ciavarri | WHEC.com

Going off to college is supposed to be an exciting time… but last Friday it turned into a nightmare for a group of three freshmen.

Police say they were robbed at gun point and beat up. One of them was shot in the arm.

News10NBC spoke to the mother of one of the boys. Her son was not physically hurt too bad.

However, Ehrich Rosen’s friend was shot while the group was trying to run away.

But Rosen’s mother says mentally, her 18-year-old is completely different.

She told News10NBC, “He’s afraid, he’s afraid of everything now. When he was home, he didn’t and this is an 18-year-old boy. He was uncomfortable being alone in the house.”

Ehrich Rosen had just graduated from Greece Athena in May and moved into Buffalo State two weeks ago to start his freshman year of college.

She recalls, “It’s a new journey. When I dropped him off, our family was there, it was just an exciting time. When we left, we never in a million years thought there would be an incident like this.”

According to Buffalo Police when Ehrich and his two friends went out on Friday night, they were walking on Grant Street, the west side of the city, and were approached by a group of men.

Ehrich’s mother, Marsha Rosen, explains what her son told her happened next.

She says, “They were just walking… six guys approached them, they did turn around… they showed them a gun and said we want everything. Ehrich was like here, take it, everything, he emptied his pockets.”

According to police, after taking what the teens had, the group of men began to beat them up.

At one point, the three freshmen were able to run away and that’s when police say someone started shooting at the teens, hitting one in the arm and shattering his bone.

While Rosen is physically okay, his mother says emotionally, he is not.

She says, “When you are shot at and your friend is shot, it’s like out of a movie and he’s going to be scarred for the rest of his life and he’s going to be looking over his shoulder, I know he is.”

Rosen was at her home in Greece asleep when her son called her to tell her what happened.

“And then when you hear the details you just run out. I just jumped in my clothes and ran. It was the drive to Buffalo that got to me crying all the way and getting more bits and pieces.”

Rosen says she feels the school did not do enough.

She says, “They never mentioned… don't step off the campus in this area. You can go to this area, but don't step off in this one, they never mentioned it.”

She hopes this upcoming weekend changes the way things are done.

She says, “Just the thought of… his back was turned and there was a five or six shots, and it could have... just that call no parent wants that, none.”

Buffalo Police say at last check, the teen that was shot is in fair condition at the hospital.

Rosen says her son did return to Buffalo State yesterday and is going to try to finish out the semester, but after that he says he wants to transfer.

According to News10NBC’s affiliate WGRZ in Buffalo, around 4 a.m. on Saturday, September 1, two female students were attacked by a group of men and had their purses stolen.

After that attack, Buffalo State issued a warning to students not to walk alone.

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