Honolulu police were looking for a man who robbed two University of Hawaii students and forced one into a car near the Hale Noelani dormitory on Dole Street Sunday night using what was identified as a replica firearm.

Police and campus security said the robber approached two male students at 7:45 p.m., pointed what looked like a pistol and demanded the students hand over their backpacks and cellphones.

One student, 19, dropped his bag and ran, while the other was forced into a car. But the second student, also 19, punched the robber and was able to escape from the car after it hit a curb, authorities said.

Authorities said the vehicle is a white, four-door car, possibly a Honda or Acura, with dark tinted windows.The students got a partial license plate of RGF-3.

The robber was described as a man in his 20s and about 6 feet tall, very tan with black crew-cut hair.

Campus security chief Wayne Ogino said the students thought the pistol might have been a paintball gun.

Ogino said the student who escaped from the vehicle received first aid for scratches and abrasions.

The incident, including the attempt to force one of the students into a car, was "unusual," Ogino said.

"We’re keeping it an open case," he said.