Men With Rifle Arrested at Malvern Prep

Jibri Marquese Richardson (left) and Michael F. O’Brien (Photos courtesy of the Chester County District Attorney’s Office)

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Two men were arrested Thursday and face charges after authorities said they brought a rifle on to Malvern Prep’s campus and began shooting.

Jibri Marquese Richardson, 22, of Ardmore and Michael F. O’Brien, 59, of Glen Mills were seen walking on to Malvern Prep’s campus around 8:40 a.m. Thursday, Chester County District Attorney Thomas P. Hogan said. One of the men was carrying a rifle, and they began firing shots.

A school employee called 911, and the campus was placed on lockdown, the District Attorney’s Office said.

The Malvern Police Department responded and located the two men leaving school property. The men had set up targets and were firing a .22 caliber rifle at the targets, the District Attorney’s Office said. No one was injured.

“As always, people must be careful and use common sense when handling firearms,” Hogan said. “Given recent incidents with active shooters, firing a rifle in close proximity to a school is simply a dumb thing to do. We are glad that the school and the police responded quickly and appropriately.”

Richardson and O’Brien were charged by Malvern Police with possession of weapon on school property, criminal trespass and disorderly conduct.

In this case, the system worked exactly as it is supposed to, Malvern Borough Police Chief Lou Marcelli said.

“Malvern Prep responded quickly, 911 communicated the information, and our police intervened to neutralize the threat,” Marcelli said. “We are grateful that nobody was injured.”

School officials echoed those statements.

“Malvern Prep has a detailed crisis-action plan developed by a military and security consultant. We followed the plan faithfully and the Malvern Police responded swiftly to conclude the incident,” Malvern Prep Head of School Christian Talbot said. “We are grateful for the careful and disciplined work of our Director of Security Steve LeStrange, all the faculty and staff who ensured the lockdown procedures, and the Malvern Police Department.”