A Penn alumnus in possession of a gun in Huntsman Hall was apprehended by Penn Police earlier today. The man was later released after being questioned.
At around 2:52 p.m., an AlliedBarton manager stationed in Huntsman Hall reported seeing a “white man entering the building with an NRA t-shirt … and a bulge that looked like a gun,” according to Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush.
“Within two minutes, officers were on the scene looking for the male,” she said. “Within 30 seconds [of arriving at the building], they stopped and detained him.”
After he was found by police, the man was removed from the building and questioned about his presence.
According to Rush, the man said he had stopped in Huntsman to use the bathroom and was unaware of the University’s policy of no guns on campus. He also was found to have a license for his weapon.
The man was not arrested, but he was warned that if he is found with a gun on campus again he will be criminally charged.
No UPennAlert was issued because the suspect was apprehended while public safety officials were determining whether to issue an alert.
“Anytime there is a potential incident … a UPennAlert [conference] call is established immediately,” Rush said. “We were literally on the call when the police on the scene at Huntsman had the man on the scene in custody.”
“Fortunately, everybody’s quick action avoided a potentially dangerous situation,” she said.
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