SILOAM SPRINGS (KFSM)-- Residents around Siloam Springs were stunned to hear about the arrest of a John Brown University student who is accused of threatening a mass shooting and/or bombing.
Siloam Springs police arrested Timothy Constantin Nov. 14 in his dorm room on campus. Several weapons and ammunition were reportedly found in his possession.
Police said friends of Constantine contacted them after they read a suicide note Constantin wrote stating he wanted to committ a mass shooting or bombing because of his hatred of society, according to court documents.
Lt. Derek Spicer with the Siloam Springs Police Department said the bravery of those friends should be noted.
“... Because had it not been for them, who knows how long this would have gone on or what would have happened," Spicer said. "That just goes to show that you don’t have to wear a badge and a gun to make an impact.”
Morgan Scholz is an alumna of JBU and hadn't heard about the incident until Wednesday. She was stunned to hear something like this happened but knows that the school's biggest priority are its students.
“You know it seems and sounds as though the right people were notified, and the right responses were taken to circumvent any harm to the suicidal student and to the students around campus," Scholz said.
Even though she didn't live on campus and was a non-traditional student, she still knew that the campus community was very close.
Another resident, Mercedes Thompson, also said she could not believe that something like this happened.
She is a student at Henderson State and said if it can happen in her hometown, it could happen anywhere.
“You think that nothing bad would happen at JBU because it is private, Christian," Thompson said. "You would think more bigger colleges not necessarily smaller colleges, everybody is so…they know each other and its very close knit. So it is a little surprising, it is a little unnerving just that fact that that could happen.”
Both Thompson and Scholz were happy that police arrested Constantin before anything bad happened.
Spicer said the 20-year-old student is in the Benton County Jail without bond, and faces the charge of criminal acts involving explosives.