The incident occurred Wednesday at 5:40 p.m. after witnesses reported seeing a man with a bulge under his shirt at the swim meet.
A police investigation has been launched after a man brought a handgun to a swim meet at North Penn High School Wednesday evening, only to be later identified as an off-duty officer from the Philadelphia Police Department.
In an interview with North Penn Now, Towamencin Police Chief Tim Troxel confirmed they received a call at 5:40 p.m. on Sept. 18 regarding a man armed with a gun at the school. The call was prompted after a witness allegedly observed a bulge under the man’s shirt — which they suspected to be a firearm — at which point the witness notified school security.
“Responding officers did eventually locate a male with a holstered handgun on his waist on school property near the pool,” Troxel said.
Witnesses at the scene described the man as “animated” during his interaction with security and police, though Troxel declined to comment on the tone of their exchange. It was quickly determined that the man was an off-duty police officer for the City of Philadelphia, Troxel said.
Police have not identified the man or provided an explanation as to why he brought a firearm into the school. Troxel declined to comment further, citing the ongoing nature of their investigation, which he said will include a review of surveillance footage from the school and interviews with witnesses.
“The subject involved has been identified, was not a student, and there was no threat of violence or cause for concern of school safety during this incident,” Troxel said.
According to state law, possession of a weapon on school property is a first-degree misdemeanor that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. The statute allows for exceptions as long as “the weapon in possessed and used in conjunction with a lawful supervised school activity or course or is possessed for other lawful purposes.”
When reached for comment, a spokesperson for North Penn School District provided the following statement:
Last evening, an assistant coach for one of our athletic teams reported to security that he saw an individual entering the natatorium and he thought the person might have a firearm holstered on his hip. Towamencin Township Police Department was contacted.
When approached by security and police, he identified himself as an off-duty police officer from another municipality and presented his badge. Towamencin Police confirmed that the person was indeed a police officer and that there was no threat.
In accordance with applicable law and School District policy, weapons are prohibited on school property. As per Board Policy 907, on-duty law enforcement personnel in uniform, or who display a badge or identification issued by an agency with jurisdiction over the school building, and who are visiting the school for official business as a result of their job duties are not subject to this prohibition.
We applaud the staff member for reporting a potential threat. As always, we encourage our students, staff, and community when they “See something say Something.”
Further information will be released once the investigation has concluded, police said.
Editor's note: this article was updated to reflect comment provided by North Penn School District after the initial article was published.
