WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- West Lafayette police say they discovered a trove of weapons, ammo, body armor and drugs while investigating complaints about a former Purdue University student last month.
According to a probable cause affidavit filed Friday, WLPD officers were called to a residence in the 1100 block of Northwestern Avenue, just a short distance northeast of Ross-Ade Stadium, on a report of subject threatening to kill himself.
Police spoke with two former roommates of Spencer C.W. Au, 22, who said his behavior had become erratic and increasingly violent since the previous summer. According to the roommates, Au had been self-medicating for depression and was “almost always under the influence of some type of drug.” The roommates also told police Au had pulled a handgun on one of them, and had also used a stun gun on them.
Police obtained a search warrant for Au’s residence, which they served on Jan. 23. Inside the house, police found what they described as a veritable arsenal: numerous rifles, handguns, shotguns, magazines and a large quantity of ammunition. They also found several tactical vests and a heavy bullet-proof vest with ballistic plates. There was no immediate indication that any of the firearms were possessed illegally.
In addition to the guns, police said they found baggies of suspect drugs labeled “cocaine,” “amphetamine sulfate” and “3-Me0-PCP,” along with empty bottles labeled “Xanax” and “LSD-25.”
A spokesman for Purdue University told RTV6 that Au had been enrolled in the school’s college of liberal arts in the fall, but that he isn’t currently enrolled.
Au faces charges of possession of cocaine and marijuana, battery resulting in bodily injury, pointing a firearm, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and maintaining a common nuisance.
A Tippecanoe County judge set a $100,000 surety and $10,000 cash bond in the case.
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