United States

University of Maryland Student Threatened to Shoot Campus Officers, Police Say

A University of Maryland student who allegedly threatened to shoot campus police officers has been arrested, the university police department says.

Ryan Matthew Sulkowski, 21, was arrested Sunday on charges that he threatened officers, the department told students and staff Monday.

A fellow student reported to the department about 11:30 a.m. Friday that Sulkowski, of Baltimore County, said he was buying guns and waiting for a background check to be complete.

Sulkowski said he was going to "make orphans out of our children," UMD police chief David Mitchell said. 

Baltimore police arrested Sulkowski at his parents' home in the county early Sunday. He was charged with making a threat of mass violence and violating school operations. He faces as much as 10 and a half years in prison and a fine of $12,500.

Sulkowski's lawyer, Gary Bernstein, said the student did not have a weapon. 

"He never had a gun. He never applied for a gun. There were no guns in the house, and the state police have confirmed that," he said in a statement. 

Local

Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information

GMU cricket stadium proposal scrapped

Nationals place Stephen Strasburg on 60-day injured list

Campus police had previous encounters with Sulkowski, Mitchell said. Amid threats at schools across the country, the university did not want to ignore the report about Sulkowski. 

"In today's day and age, with what's happening on too many campuses throughout the United States, we weren't going to take the chance that this young man could walk into a store and buy a shotgun or a rifle and carry out the threat," he said. 

Sulkowski was released from jail on his own recognizance. 

University officials told students they should contact police if they see Sulkowski on campus.

Contact Us