Officers with the Grand Junction Police Department responded to a report of a man with a weapon in the Colorado Mesa University (CMU) dining hall located at 1455 N 12th Street on 12/12/24, at approximately 7:55 p.m. Law enforcement placed the dining hall on lock down and learned a male brandished a firearm in the campus dining hall before withdrawing into the men’s bathroom. A male matching the description of the suspect attempted to leave the dining hall and officers contacted the male, discovered him to be in possession of a firearm, and took him into custody without incident. Alexander Simpson (age 20) was arrested and taken to the Mesa County Detention Facility with charges pending.
There were no shots fired and no injuries in this incident. The suspect is not believed to be a CMU student. The Grand Junction Police Department is in the early stages of investigating this incident and do not believe there is any further threat to the Colorado Mesa University campus. There is no further information available at this time.
UPDATE (12/13/24):
Alexander Simpson (age 20) was charged with the following:
- Unlawful Carrying of a Weapon on School, College or University Grounds (F5)
- False Report of Explosives, Weapons, or Harmful Substances (F6)
- Unlawfully Carrying a Concealed Weapon (M1)
- Reckless Endangerment (M2)