Quantcast

Man with Rifle Nabbed Near East Patchogue School

Verne W. Critz Elementary School in East Patchogue was put on lockdown and a man was arrested Tuesday after police received reports of a person near the school carrying what appeared to be a rifle, Suffolk County police said.

When police arrived they found a man with a rifle, but later learned that it was an old relic that was welded shut, a police spokeswoman said.

The man, who police didn’t identify, was arrested, but the charge is unrelated to the gun, police said.

Responding officers determined that he had “no intention to harm anyone,” the spokeswoman said.

It was unclear how close he got to the school.

The lockdown was lifted around 1 p.m., police said.

School officials did not return a call for comment.