Threats of 'murderous rampage' trigger arrest

Threats of 'murderous rampage' trigger arrest
Student in custody after warning of another Virginia Tech

A Southern Illinois University student was arrested after authorities say he threatened a "murderous rampage" similar to the Virginia Tech shootings that left 32 people and the gunman dead.

A gun dealer had alerted federal authorities about the man, saying he had seemed overly anxious to get a shipment of semiautomatic weapons, according to an affidavit filed in court by a police detective.

Olutosin Oduwole was charged Tuesday with attempting to make a terrorist threat, a felony. He remained jailed Wednesday in lieu of $1 million bail.

According to the affidavit, the 22-year-old student wrote a note demanding that money be deposited to a PayPal account, threatening that "if this account doesn't reach $50,000 in the next 7 days then a murderous rampage similar to the VT shooting will occur at another highly populated university. THIS IS NOT A JOKE!"

Authorities found the note Friday in Oduwole's car on campus, said university spokesman Greg Conroy. Police also said they found a loaded gun in Oduwole's dorm room.

The detective said in the affidavit that Oduwole, of Maplewood, N.J., had recently bought three .38-caliber semiautomatic guns online but had not yet received them, and also had ordered a .45-caliber semiautomatic gun similar to an Uzi.

A gun dealer alerted the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives because Oduwole "appeared very anxious to get these firearms and seemed very impatient," the affidavit said.

According to a search warrant, police also seized a picture of Oduwole flashing gang signs, a camcorder and U.S. and Nigerian passports. The court documents did not list the name on those passports.

He attended SIUE last year, and the affidavit notes that while students were moving out of their dorm rooms on May 5, 2006, SIUE police received a report that Oduwole was wearing a bullet proof vest.

Last week Oduwole was charged in Madison County with computer fraud and theft over $300. Police allege that on June 28 he sold a machine gun over the Internet to a man from Kirksville, Mo. The man mailed Oduwole a check for $1,000 but never received the gun. Oduwole reportedly signed the postal receipt with the name "Jeff Robinson." The check was mailed to an apartment in Wood River and deposited, on July 2, into an SIUE credit union account in Oduwole's name.

Calls on Wednesday to Oduwole's attorney, John Cernkovich, rang busy. Conroy said Oduwole was taking summer courses this year.

The Madison County state's attorney did not immediate respond to a message seeking comment.

Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville is about 20 miles northeast of St. Louis and has an enrollment of about 13,500 students.