An MSU student and two other men are in custody for assaulting a non-MSU student in a Hubbard Hall room Thursday afternoon.

The men — one of whom was armed with a handgun — poured gasoline onto the victim and assaulted him, MSU spokesman Terry Denbow said, adding that no one was seriously injured.

Within minutes, the three men were arrested, MSU police Lt. Alan Haller said.

One of the men brought gasoline into the building in an Aquafina water bottle, poured it on the chest of one of the three victims and threatened to light it, Haller said.

There were three people in the room considered victims because they were involved in the situation, Haller said.

Charges should be decided today.

On Thursday afternoon, the smell of gasoline lingered on the 10th floor of South Hubbard Hall, where the incident occurred.

A K-9 unit was at the scene, as were several university officials.

The area near Hubbard Hall has been the site of past violent incidents, including a September 2005 shooting in a nearby parking lot, which injured two people.

Soon after Thursday's incident, Denbow and other MSU officials, including MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon, met with MSU police.

"We also used this opportunity as a team to see if there are some broader issues that go beyond the incident that we need to look at," Simon said. "Does this happen to be an isolated incident? How do we communicate with parents?"

While the meeting was wrapping up, the mother of the arrested MSU student came into the station and complained that MSU didn't respond to calls she made in the last week concerning prior assaults against her son.

One of the assaults occurred either late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning, she said, adding her son and brother are now "locked up."

The woman said the university didn't respond when she called last week to warn that something needed to be done. So after the most recent attack, her brother came to MSU to "talk" things over.

"Michigan State — I warned them last week," she said. "It's still not over."

Denbow said he was told the woman had called a residence hall, concerned about her son's security.

"I'm told we responded to her concerns by going to her son," Denbow said. "However, at that point, the student is responsible for pursuing it."

But the student did not follow up or file any police reports, Denbow and MSU police officials said.

University officials held an informational meeting Thursday evening in Hubbard Hall to discuss the incident.

About 200 people attended the meeting. Lee June, vice president for student affairs and services, led most of the meeting.

University Housing officials sent an e-mail Thursday evening to all on-campus residents.

June and Haller discussed details of the incident, which led to a broader discussion on racial issues on campus.

Everyone involved in Thursday's incident is of the same racial background, Haller said.

Back-and-forth conversations occurred between June and students about the appropriate course of action to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Haller said the police prevent incidents every day, and June said officials are continuing to discuss preventative measures.

June suggested separate meetings in the future to discuss the racial issues.

Staff writer Kristen Daum contributed to this report.

Melissa Domsic can be reached at domsicme@msu.edu.