ORLANDO, Fla. — Authorities are crediting the University of Central Florida Police Department’s (UCFPD) quick response to a student’s 911 call with thwarting James Oliver Seevakumaran’s sinister plan to attack other students in his residence hall.
Seevakumaran’s roommate, who was holed up in a bathroom, called campus police after the 30-year-old suspect pointed a gun at him. While the roommate contacted authorities, Seevakumaran pulled a fire alarm to get other students out in the open, so he could shoot them in the seven-story dorm where he lived, according to the Associated Press.
UCFPD officers responded within three minutes of receiving the emergency call, which might have thrown off the suspect’s plan, UCFPD Police Chief Richard Beary said at a press conference. When officers arrived at the scene, Seevakumaran had shot himself in the head. During an investigation, police found four makeshift explosive devices in a backpack, a .45-caliber handgun, a .22-caliber tactical rifle and a couple hundred rounds of ammunition.
About 500 students were evacuated from the dorm because of the incident.
It is unclear why Seekvakumaran planned the attack. School officials stated that the suspect had no disciplinary problems, nor had he expressed any violent behavior. The university was currently in the process of removing him from the dorm because he was not enrolled for the current semester.
Video of campus police entering dorm (Warning: graphic content)
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