Police officers made a jaw-dropping discovery when raiding a university student’s bedroom. Following up on an alarming online order of 1,500 rounds of ammunition, a raid of Constantine Demetriades’ sleeping quarters unearthed a deadly assault rifle under his bed. 

The bearded 21-year-old is a senior at Rollins College, in Orlando, Florida. College staff became suspicious when they spotted Demetriades had ordered bullets and had them delivered to the campus Winter Park, a suburb of Orlando.

According to Orange County Sheriff’s Office, a search of Demetriades’ dorm revealed an unloaded AR-15 rifle underneath his bed inside an “unsecured black carrying case” with one loaded magazine and five empty magazines.

Police said Demetriades was arrested without incident and transferred to the Winter Park Police Department. 

AR-15 rifles have sadly been used in multiple mass shootings in the US. The gun and versions of it, which can fire fire 45 rounds per minute, was used in Uvalde, Texas, in 2022 to kill 19 children and two teachers. The weapon was also used to kill nine people and injure 25 others at bar in Dayton, Ohio, in 1999. 

According to ClickOrlando, the student faces a charge of possession of a firearm on school property.

One student told the news site: “I’m happy they’ve found it because I’ve seen him around campus, and if they didn’t do anything about it, I’d personally fear for my safety.”

Another added: “It’s crazy, it shocked me”, and a third told the channel: “He could just be super interested in firearms but then again, that’s no excuse.”

It’s reported Demetriades told police he had the rifle because he had just returned from a Thanksgiving holiday in New Jersey, where he said he purchased the weapon legally. 

Carrying firearms, even assault rifles, is legal in Florida, but guns are banned on college campuses. 

The Independent reports Rollins College released a statement which said: “On Wednesday, the College received a report indicating a violation of our weapons policy. After receiving this information, we immediately initiated an investigation.”

“We quickly identified and contacted the student, who cooperated fully with College officials and local law enforcement as we investigated the matter further.

“The student was arrested and is not permitted to be on campus while the College proceeds with the student conduct process.”