A Cornell University student was arrested over the weekend after police say he was found with a rifle and ammunition on the campus of Syracuse University.
According to reporting by Syracuse.com, 22-year-old Mateu Healey-Parera of Mansfield Center, Connecticut, was taken into custody Saturday afternoon near the Schine Student Center.
Police say a concerned citizen reported seeing a man carrying a gun case near Crouse College shortly before 4 p.m. Officers with the university’s Department of Public Safety stopped Healey-Parera on Waverly Avenue near the student center and took him into custody without incident.
Authorities say Healey-Parera was carrying a 1905 .30-06 Rock Island rifle with a scope attached and had about 40 rounds of ammunition in his backpack, according to a criminal complaint filed in court.
Officials say Healey-Parera is a student at Cornell University and had traveled to Syracuse by bus. Investigators say he was waiting to board another bus back to Ithaca when he was stopped by campus safety officers.
Healey-Parera has been charged with criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds, a felony under New York law that prohibits firearms on school or college property. He is being held at the Onondaga County Justice Center on $50,000 cash bail or $100,000 bond.
Syracuse Police Chief Mark Rusin said investigators are still trying to determine why the student brought the rifle onto campus and where the firearm was purchased.
Authorities also obtained an extreme risk protection order allowing officers to search Healey-Parera’s residence as the investigation continues.
The arrest happened just before a men’s basketball game at the nearby JMA Wireless Dome that drew nearly 20,000 fans, though police say there is currently no indication the game was a target.
Police say Healey-Parera was not previously known to law enforcement, and the investigation remains ongoing.
