UMASS LOWELL
AIRSOFT GUN CAUSED LOCKDOWN
… Juvenile Suspect ID’d
Published
Turns out the gun that sent a Massachusetts college campus into full lockdown mode wasn’t real at all — cops say it was an airsoft replica carried by a juvenile, sparking hours of chaos and fear across campus.
The scare erupted Wednesday on the campus of UMass Lowell when video circulated on social media of a person near a dorm holding what looked like a firearm. Students immediately barricaded themselves inside classrooms and residence halls while heavily armed cops swarmed the university.
🚨BREAKING🚨:VIDEO SHOWS ARMED SUSPECT AT UMASS LOWELL
Footage circulating appears to show a person walking with a rifle on campus. Police confirm the suspect is an Asian male, 5’5, wearing a gray/white sweatshirt and black shorts, matching earlier emergency alert. pic.twitter.com/1tsuwq6tho
— The_Independent (@TheIndeWire) September 3, 2025
@TheIndeWire
On Thursday, Lowell Police confirmed the weapon had been recovered and it was nothing more than an airsoft gun. The suspect, a juvenile, has since been identified.
Police said surveillance and student video captured the suspect, but no shots were fired. Law enforcement defended the massive response, stressing that while the weapon proved to be an airsoft gun, police will always deploy every resource until the community’s safety is secured.
The panic comes amid a string of recent mass shootings across the U.S., leaving schools, campuses and communities on edge. Just last week, two children were killed and at least 20 others injured when a gunman fired more than 100 rounds through the windows of a Minneapolis church during morning Mass.
Classes at Lowell resumed on Thursday, but the scare left students rattled and campus on edge.
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