Man With Pellet Gun Taken Into Custody At FIT, Police Say

CHELSEA, NY — Police took a man with a pellet gun into custody Friday evening at the Fashion Institute of Technology after he posted a threatening video on Instagram, the NYPD said. Cops apprehended the man outside the Chelsea school on West 27th Street near Seventh Avenue after students were told to "shelter in place" and lock doors and secure windows in a text message just after 6 p.m.

The video that led to the man's arrest was discovered Friday, police said, but it's uncertain when it was posted.

The NYPD said there was no active threat in a 6:40 p.m. Twitter post. Security had cleared the area around an entrance and were not letting people inside.

FIT student Justine Scott said she heard from friends who were locked in a cafe on campus that someone locked himself inside with a gun. Her friend called in a panic saying the school would not let anyone in, she said.

Her friends "claim that he locked himself in somewhere but they don't know where on campus," Scott, 21, said. "It's just shocking [because] you never think it'll happen at your school, especially in New York."

"The only thing I can do is just pray," she added.

Cops told Marina Blasi, another student, that she couldn't go back into the school when she walked up to the entrance, she said.

"They said as long as they're still on campus, pretty much, I'm not getting in," said Blasi, 19.

FIT could not immediately be reached for more information.

Patch editors Sydney Pereira and Kathleen Culliton contributed reporting.