An email sent out by public safety in the late morning of Jan. 31 gave details on a “potential threat on social media,” later revealed to be a student now arrested and banned from the university.
As snow began to pile onto campus sidewalks, students were expecting to get an email on early cancellation. Instead, they received a report explaining that one anonymous student reported another anonymous student on an anonymous activity perceived as a threat. According to the email, “…the West Chester Borough Police and the WCU Police worked collaboratively to arrest the student at an off-campus residence.”
Met with many unanswered variables, students on campus looked to the various public reporting services provided by Public Safety and the borough police. Arrest records, imminent danger alerts and crime activity reports give no indication on what this threat could have been.
Speculation has grown on the incident, with one student citing a Snapchat joke featuring guns made in poor taste as the cause of the incident. No suspect has been identified.
This email further punctuates student emotions on the subject of gun safety on campus, as official posters on “active shooter response” are posted around the campus.
“With those signs they posted everywhere around campus that tell us what to do during the event of a shooter,” said Ivy Martin, a fourth-year student, “…it makes it seem almost inevitable, which is terrifying.”
The Quad will update as we receive more information on the incident.