Man Arrested On School Grounds With Hunting Bow, Knife: Police

MIDDLESEX BOROUGH, NJ — A man who cut across Middlesex school grounds last week with hunting bows and a knife was on his way to sell the equipment, said police Monday in a new update.

At 11:31 a.m. Tuesday, Middlesex Police responded to a call of a suspicious person trespassing on the grounds of Von E. Mauger Middle School.

A school official called 911 and said a man appeared to be carrying a camouflaged bag typically used to transport guns or other weapons. He was seen cutting across the back of school property.

Von E. Mauger School, along with Woodland Intermediate School and Watchung Elementary School, were immediately put into lockdown.

The man was no longer on school property when police found him, but he had hunting bows and a knife on him, said police. Robert Villa, 30 of Warren, was charged with three counts of unlawful possession of weapons on school property.

Police said Monday he was "traversing school property on his way to sell the hunting bows, which were stored in bags." He was going to sell them at a nearby second-hand store.

He "did not indicate any intent to use the bows or knife on school property," said police. "However, his presence on the property raised the suspicions of school staff and he was found to be in violation of New Jersey criminal statutes regarding weapons possession."

Middlesex borough Police Chief Matthew Geist and Middlesex school superintendent Roberta Freeman both commended the way it was handled, and the arrest of Villa.