UNIVERSITY PARK – An eight-hour standoff between police and an armed gunman ended around 9 a.m. Sunday when the suspect shot himself. The Centre County Coroner’s Office identified the victim as 24-year-old Qwynton Armstead of Philadelphia.
Penn State, State College and state police responded to the area of Nittany Apartments on the University Park campus shortly before 1 a.m. Sunday when a visitor to campus was reported to be inside with a handgun. The visitor to building 12 was reported to be inside a second-story, four-bedroom apartment located in the building, which contains four apartments.
Students were evacuated from five apartment buildings and the area around Nittany Apartments by campus police, who first arrived at the scene.
Penn State Counseling and Psychological Services has made counselors available for any students impacted by the incident. Students can contact CAPS in 221 Ritenour Building at 863-0395.
About a dozen state troopers including negotiators and members of the Special Emergency Response Team were called in to assist campus and borough police.
A command post was set up by campus police in the Nittany Apartments community center and that area of campus was cordoned off throughout the night.
The series of events apparently started earlier in the evening during an altercation at a State College bar. The suspect apparently was in town visiting his sister, a Penn State student.
There are 162 apartments in the Nittany Apartments area of campus, with about 600 upperclassmen as residents. There are about 13,000 students housed on campus at University Park.
