A 25-year-old University of Delaware student now faces federal and state charges after police found an illegal stash of weapons, tactical gear, and a notebook detailing a plan to attack the university’s police department.
Luqmaan Khan, a Wilmington resident, was arrested on November 24, close to midnight, when New Castle County Police Department patrol officers spotted his white Toyota Tacoma parked after hours in Canby Park.
Police officers had probable cause to order Khan out of the truck, but he refused to comply and resisted arrest before ultimately being taken into custody.
A following search of the Tacoma found a loaded .357 caliber Glock handgun equipped with a conversion brace kit- along with three additional magazines, an armored ballistic plate, binoculars, and a composition notebook filled with a dark plot.
The notebook included a detailed handwritten diagram of the University of Delaware Police Department building, marked with entry and exit points, and explicitly named a specific officer. His notes further detail an escape plan and how to evade police after a potential attack.
The following day – November 25, FBI agents and New Castle County police executed a search warrant at Khan’s Wilmington home, finding a Glock 19 9mm handgun with an illegal “switch” conversion device, a .556 rifle equipped with a scope and red dot sight, 11 extended magazines, another tactical vest with a ballistic plate, and a large stash of ammo.
Khan has now been charged federally with multiple gun charges. At the state level, New Castle County authorities filed felony counts of possession of a large-capacity magazine and carrying a concealed deadly weapon, along with misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest, expired vehicle tags, and failure to possess a driver’s license.
Kahn went through an arraignment and was held on $107,200 cash bail. After that, he was handed over to the FBI.
The University of Delaware confirmed Khan’s enrollment as an undergraduate but added that he has been separated from the campus pending the investigation.
In a letter published after the arrest, University Interim President Laura Carlson announced that she was confident there are no “known or immediate threats to the University of Delaware community.”
“At times like this, I appreciate evermore how strong our community is, and how we come together and care for each other both in good times and when we learn about something alarming like this,” Carlson wrote.