Details have now been released on the case of a UNG cadet who was arrested after bringing a rifle on the Dahlonega Campus in April.
According to the Gainesville Times, Gabriel Jose Hernandez, now a 26-year-old UNG graduate, was arrested on various charges including terroristic threats and acts (misdemeanor) after he brought a rifle near the school library and uttered a treating statement to faculty and students.
The Times stated that according to UNG police, Hernandez did not intend to harm anyone but was experiencing a “. . . serious mental crisis.”
According to UNG police who spoke with the Gainesville Times, Hernandez believe he had received, “‘. . . revelations from Jesus. . .'” that a bad event would take place on campus and it was his duty to protect it. When Hernandez brought the rifle to campus and said the statement, “‘It’s about to get loud in here'”, he believed that another person posed a threat to the school, and he intended to stop them. He saw “‘. . . a guy with a black backpack walking in through the front doors of the library. . .” and believed that the person was “‘. . .from his revelation. . .'”
The Times went on to report that Hernandez had a history of this type of behavior, including an incident that occurred shortly before the aforementioned in which Hernandez took and ran away with a student’s mandolin case and backpack. The student stated in an interview with a UNG police officer that Hernandez would not return his belongings until he determined that the student did not possess any harmful items.
The officer told the student that “‘. . . Outside of the criminal charges that we pressed on him, we got his family involved and made sure there were mental health steps taken’. . .”