Arkansas State leader praises campus strength

Instead, Jonesboro, Arkansas police said in a report that Brad Bartelt, 47, backed down on Thursday and surrendered after having second thoughts about going on a rampage.

Bartelt appeared via video link from the Craighead County jail before a judge, who set his bond at $50,000. University Police Chief Randy Martin praised the fast response and the cooperation of numerous outside agencies that assisted in the response, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Arkansas State Police Bomb Squad, and the Craighead County Sheriff’s Department. The judge also told Bartelt he faced charges of aggravated assault, terroristic threats and possession of weapons and explosives. “He stated that he was going to arrive at the university and shoot other people but he understood that murder would be erroneous, so he was going kill himself”. Police said no shots were fired and no one was injured in the incident, but the campus had to be put on lockdown as a precaution. While speaking with negotiators, he waved his gun and threatened to shoot the propane tank, the report said.

In a Facebook status posted Wednesday, Bartelt said he was “suicidal and now homicidal”, referencing what he said was an effort from the Social Security Administration to falsify medical records “over 22 times”.

Bartelt said he didn’t know which buildings he was near and wasn’t familiar with the area.

“I don’t want no incidents, but I’m just exhausted of, hell, I’ve been beat for three years so you might want to send somebody up here”, Bartelt said.

Bartelt’s next court appearance is scheduled for January 29.

A tweet shared by the university reads, “Report of an active shooter spotted at the student union”.

Bartelt told police he was on several psychiatric medications and painkillers, according to the report released Friday.

After the standoff ended with no injuries, police were searching a residence on Hall Street in Jonesboro that Bartelt shares with 41-year-old girlfriend Connie Francis Hampton when they arrested her on a parole violation as well as a charge of possession of a firearm by a felon, police said.

According to investigators, he sped onto campus, crashed his truck into a barrier, and got out of the auto brandishing a shot gun and a gas can.

ASU Chancellor Tim Hudson said during the news conference, “Our alert system worked”. They found Bartelt in the truck holding a 12-gauge shotgun under his chin and threatening to harm himself, Elliott said. “Together we rise; together we thrive”.