Henrico County police arrested a 19-year-old dishwasher yesterday and charged him with crimes linked to a four-hour lockdown Tuesday at the University of Richmond after he was suspected of having a gun on campus.

UR Police Chief Robert Dillard said yesterday that the weapon was a pellet gun.

The teenager, Seth Adam Newman, was arrested on Richmond warrants charging him with a felony count of hiding his identity and misdemeanor counts of impersonating a police officer and acting like a police officer. Bond was set at $10,000, police said.

Relieved university officials, including President Edward L. Ayers, and police from three jurisdictions told reporters last night that Newman visited the school Tuesday afternoon, but they gave no explanation for the visit.

Newman has worked as a dishwasher for three years at St. Joseph's Home for the Aged, run by the Little Sisters of the Poor near the Koger West Office Park in western Henrico.

He was on his day off Tuesday when the UR incident occurred, said Stephen Neill, a spokesman for the Catholic Diocese of Richmond.

"The people at Little Sisters have a high regard for Seth and are praying for him," Neill said. "He was well-liked, and there was no sign that there was something bothering him."

Police listed Newman's address as in the 1700 block of Chadwick Drive in Henrico, only a few blocks from his job. A family friend last night said that Newman was home-schooled and may have been attending a local community college.

The UR campus was placed on alert Tuesday afternoon after a young man was turned away from Boatwright Library because he did not have proper identification, police said.

Staffers notified police because they were concerned about his appearance and because he seemed to have a weapon.

Richmond's and Henrico's police chiefs praised their counterparts at UR yesterday, saying that efforts to alert students and neighboring jurisdictions were well-done.

Graduation ceremonies get under way at the university this weekend.
Contact Bill McKelway at (804) 649-6601 or bmckelway@timesdispatch.com.