USF Student Arrested In Bizarre Gunman/Bomb Probe

A strange case unfolded Monday on  the USF campus, beginning with a report of an armed gunman on campus.

A chilling alert went out Monday at University of South Florida: “Armed intruder on campus at the library. Officers are on scene searching the area. Avoid the area and report anything suspicious.”

Students watched police storm the school library with guns drawn as the campus remained on lock-down.

Authorities arrested Vincent Thomas-Perry McCoy on a university shuttle bus after he stood up and proclaimed he was the man authorities were looking for. Witnesses said he claimed to have a bomb; he faces charges of making false claims and remained in jail late Monday.

At the end of the day, authorities didn’t know if McCoy was connected to the initial report of a man with a gun near the library. If the suspect truly was on campus, he slipped away. If it was a hoax, police are looking into that too.

“We have to take it seriously every time,” said USF police Lt. Meg Ross. “Until we know otherwise, we have to treat it as a real situation.”

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Former USF Student Sentenced To 15 Years In Terror Trial

Former University of South Florida student Ahmed Mohamed received a maximum 15-year federal prison sentence Thursday for providing material support to terrorists.

In court, U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday pondered the 27-year-old’s potential aloud, gazing at the former engineering doctoral student and teaching assistant who had once managed a 4.0 GPA.

“I still wonder why this young man in front of me at his age, at his intelligence, how he has become committed to this path,” Merryday said. Read more