Sequoia Hall was closed temporarily today as Sacramento State University police searched the building for a suspicious man.

At about 6:50 p.m., the University Police Department was notified that a suspicious-looking man was in Parking Structure 3.

University Police Lt. Dave Heaphy said the man was possibly casing vehicles.

When officers checked the parking structure, they were not able to locate the man.

The suspicious man was described to be 25 to 27 years old, bald with an orange goatee, wearing a white shirt and jeans and carrying an orange backpack.

“Maybe 20 minutes to half an hour later, some other person calls the police department saying there’s a person matching that description over by the Well near the bicycle rack,” Heaphy said.

Officers were sent to check the location and saw the man described, running away from the officers.

Heaphy said the man ran into Sequoia Hall.

“We get here and we search the building. We can’t find him, so we don’t know where he is. We don’t know what he was up to,” Heaphy said.

Police officers were positioned at every entrance of Sequoia Hall and students were not permitted to enter until police secured the building.

“We just wanted to make sure the building was safe and that he’s not still in there, so the teams were looking all over the area,” Heaphy said.

Students who expressed their concern to the officers were told that “everything is fine.”

After officers searched the building for about 25 minutes, the patrol of Sequoia Hall ended at about 8:20 p.m. Heaphy said police officers will continue the search elsewhere for the suspicious man.

“We want to continue to look out for him as we continue our patrols,” Heaphy said.