Pakistan-born US student held with arsenal in alleged mass-shooting plot

A Pakistani immigrant and a University of Delaware student has been arrested after police recovered a large cache of arms and ammunition along with a manifesto allegedly detailing plans to “kill all” to achieve “martyrdom” by resorting to mass shooting on the campus.

Large arms cache found in vehicle

The accused, Luqmaan Khan, 25, was arrested minutes before midnight on November 24, after police found him in a pickup truck parked near a park. They decided to search the vehicle after Khan acted in a suspicious manner.

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The police officials found several guns, body armour, a .357 Glock pistol, and numerous loaded 27-round magazines. According to a report in the New York Post, the pistol could even be fitted with a device that converted it into a semi-automatic.

Detailed attack plan

Moreover, the police officials found a notebook full of handwritten notes detailing plans on how to utilise those weapons to eliminate his former school’s campus police department. It also had a map of its headquarters that was marked with planned entry and exit points. The report further stated that it had phrases like “kill all-martyrdom”.

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According to ABC 6, police said that these showed “premeditated assault plans” and obvious “warfare techniques.”

Police said that Khan was born in Pakistan, but has lived in the US since he was a youth and is an American citizen.

FBI raid finds a larger arsenal

Following his arrest, the FBI raided his home and found even a larger arsenal, including an AR-style rifle equipped with a red-dot scope, a second Glock pistol, which was equipped with an illegal device that converted it to a fully automatic machine gun capable of shooting 1,200 rounds per minute.

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Eleven other extended magazines were also along with hollow-point bullets and a bulletproof vest. None of the weapons were registered.

Residents who spoke with investigators said that Khan had once been approachable and generally pleasant, but over the past several months, his behaviour had changed noticeably. According to neighbours, he became increasingly distant and “standoffish.” Spotlight Delaware reported that, until his recent arrest, Khan had never been in trouble with the law and had no prior criminal history on record.

Charged with illegal possession of machine gun

Khan is currently being held in custody, with authorities confirming that he remains jailed as the case continues to unfold. At this stage, the only formal charge filed against him is illegal possession of a machine gun, while the FBI proceeds with a broader investigation into his activities and intentions.

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Police officials said that the incident could have ended far differently and that an unforeseen moment of luck played a major role in preventing a potential disaster. Newcastle Police Master Cpl. Richard Chambers explained that officers happened upon Khan’s vehicle purely by chance while patrolling Canby Park West.

Instead of simply advising him that the park was closed and moving on, he said, the officers chose to look deeper. “They did police work,” Chambers noted, emphasizing that their decision to engage rather than dismiss the encounter proved critical.