On Friday, May 3, 2024, Knox College students, faculty and staff were notified via email of a potential threat to campus. That morning, Knox College Campus Safety received several reports of a potential weapon present on campus.

At 12:44 p.m., Vice President for Student Development Marquita Barker and Vice President for Administration and General Counsel Brad Nolden notified the campus community that no immediate threat had been found.

According to a police report from the Galesburg Police Department (GPD), Campus Safety received reports of a Snapchat photo depicting, “a gun cleaning kit, a gun case, and a pouch with molle webbing on it,”. The picture also appeared to depict a student’s desk in the background.

Campus Safety then made contact with GPD before entering the student’s room. After locating the items, Campus Safety confiscated them and returned to the Campus Safety office. The gun case was empty and the cleaning kit appeared unused, according to the police report.

Campus Safety advised the responding officer that they would attempt to make contact with the student in question, and would contact GPD when they had done so.

“A short while later,” according to the police report, Campus Safety contacted GPD to say that they had made contact with the student. The student told GPD and Campus Safety that their parent had purchased a pistol for them back at home. The student explained that the case and kit were cheaper here than at home.

The student then displayed a train ticket and further plane ticket for transportation home. Campus Safety told GPD that they would escort the student to the station. No weapon was found in the student’s possession at the time of this incident.