Police lift lockdown, no suspect found

Police from Richmond, Henrico County and the university surround Boatwright Memorial Library May 6 after employees reported seeing a gunman disguised as a sheriff's officer. (Dan Petty/The Collegian)

A lockdown at the University of Richmond campus has been lifted after police say they have not found a suspected gunman in Boatwright Memorial Library, university spokesman Brian Eckert announced around 7:15 p.m. Tuesday.

"The campus has been thoroughly searched, and there is no threat apparent at this time," Eckert said. "The police feel that the suspicious individual that was seen earlier this afternoon has left campus and left the area."

The campus was placed on lockdown around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday after employees at the library reported seeing a man wearing a fake beard and carrying either a B.B. gun or semi-automatic pistol, Eckert said.

Eckert said university employees at the library circulation desk saw the suspect, who was described as a slender white male in his late 20s at 5 feet, 11 inches with short blonde hair.

The suspect was wearing a bucket hat, carrying an olive-green duffel bag, and walking through the library and changing clothes, Eckert said. He was wearing a navy shirt and a brown jacket that said "Sheriff" on the back, Eckert said.

When library employees asked the suspect for identification, he declined to give it, Eckert said.

Additional police patrols will be on campus tonight and throughout the surrounding area, Eckert said. Resident assistants will be conducting extra rounds throughout dormitories and apartments that remain open for athletics teams and a handful of students.

The university will be open tomorrow, but university officials are urging employees and students to be vigilant and report anything suspicious they see. People who see suspicious behavior or have additional questions about the incident are encouraged to call (804) 289-8715.

The university's safety shuttle will be in operation from 7:30 p.m.-2:30 a.m. and sandwiches will be available in the police department for students Tuesday night.

Most students have left the campus for the summer after final exams for undergraduates ended Saturday. Faculty and staff are still on campus, and law students are still finishing exams.

University officials activated the emergency alert system after the employees called the university police around 2:50 p.m. The first text message was sent around 3:30 p.m. and read: "Dangerous person reported on campus. Use caution, and warn others. Report unusual activity to [university police]."

Officials also contacted students through voicemail, e-mail and telephone calls to cell phones and room phones. Students receiving alerts to their cell phones had to have been registered with the university's alert system.

A second message followed around 4:30 p.m. that said, "Dangerous person reported on campus, carrying a gun. Person is 511, blonde, thin, with navy shirt. Seek shelter and lock down."

University police and Resident Life officials were going door-to-door to inform students of the lockdown's status. Many students were getting information from local television news stations, the Internet and radio.

Police from the University of Richmond, the City of Richmond, and Henrico County responded to the incident. Richmond City dispatched a bloodhound to sweep the library after a piece of the suspect's fake beard was found outside the building, but the trail eventually went cold, Eckert said. A police helicopter was also searching campus from above.

A final text message alert lifting the lockdown was sent at 7:55 p.m. The message read: "Campus lockdown lifted. Community members are encouraged to remain vigilant. More detailed information on web."

Summer session is not set to begin until May 26, but commencement ceremonies are planned for Saturday and Sunday.

St. Catherine's and St. Christopher's high schools, located a few miles from campus, were also placed on lockdown. All after-school activities there were canceled.

(Collegian staff writer Dan Petty reported this story from the University of Richmond, Va.)