WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A box of gun supplies that led to Monday’s (Nov. 17) evacuation of the Purdue Armory has been claimed by its owner, who had reported the items as stolen, according to university police.
Lt. Fred Davis said a graduate student came to the Purdue Police Department on Tuesday (Nov. 18) to report that several items had been stolen from the bed of his truck, parked in the 400 block of Russell Street. The items reported stolen included black powder and other commonly available reloading supplies for a muzzleloading-type gun.
Davis said the student positively identified the box and supplies that had been taken from the back of his truck sometime between 11 p.m. Friday (Nov. 14) and 6 a.m. Saturday (Nov. 15).
About 100-150 people were evacuated from the Purdue Armory and the building was closed for about 90 minutes Monday morning after a groundskeeper discovered the ammunition box just outside of the building. Northbound University Street at Third Street also was closed off, as a member of the Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Department’s bomb squad retrieved the container.
