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A man arrested after a lockdown Friday at the University of Ottawa has been charged with carrying a replica firearm, police say.
The man was seen near the uOttawa LRT station at around 4:20 p.m., roughly the same time the university went into lockdown, the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) wrote in a release Saturday.
The man appeared in court Saturday morning. A publication ban prevents CBC from naming him or providing personal details about him.
He was arrested on Waller Street north of the university just before 7 p.m., according to OPS. The lockdown at the University of Ottawa ended soon after.
He is facing charges of possessing a weapon dangerous to the public peace and mischief.
Police said there were no injuries reported, but the investigation remains ongoing.
Student union concerned
Despite the lockdown being over a few hours after the incident began, the uOttawa Students’ Union was upset about how students were notified about the incident.
“We want to recognize that [Friday] evening’s lockdown on campus has left many students unsettled and concerned,” the union wrote in a post on social media.
A statement from the university told people to be ready “to run, hide or, if your life is in imminent danger, defend yourself by any means necessary until you can get away.”
“It appears that notifications were only sent to members signed up for uOSecure and not all students,” the student union wrote.
“While we understand that all parties were working in the best interest of students through an incredibly difficult situation, we would have expected that the safety protocols be shared via email with all students.”
The student union also called on the university to develop a clear emergency plan for similar future situations.
In her own post, University of Ottawa president and vice-chancellor Marie-Eve Sylvestre wrote that the safety of students, staff and the university community is the university’s top priority.
“Thank you for doing your part to comply with the alert and to keep everyone around you safe,” she wrote.
