PIERMONT — A Connecticut man found trespassing Wednesday at a South Orangetown elementary school was arrested at a nearby store while carrying a knife, police said.
Abdulrahim Sulaiman, 23, of Bridgeport had already entered the main lobby of Tappan Zee Elementary School before 8 a.m. Wednesday, when he was spotted by school officials, police said.
After a call from Principal William Lee, police officers from Piermont and Orangetown arrived and arrested Sulaiman at a nearby convenience store.
Police said Sulaiman was carrying a gravity knife at the time of his arrest. The knife is similar to a switchblade.
In an e-mail to parents, Lee said he had questioned Sulaiman "for a few minutes" before asking him to leave.
No one was injured.
Lee said classes were not canceled, but students and staff were on lockdown while police swept the building.
Sulaiman was charged with third-degree criminal trespass and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, both misdemeanors.
He was being held in the Rockland County jail. Bail was set at $5,000 cash. He is due in court Feb. 3.
"Any time an unauthorized adult shows up at a school, it’s cause for concern," Piermont Police Chief Michael O’Shea said.
O’Shea said the case was open and declined to comment further.
It remained unclear why Sulaiman had entered the school.
Vicki Caramante, vice president of the school’s PTA, said she thought the staff handled the incident well, although it raised general concerns about safety.
"Any time you hear about a thing like this, you’re immediately worried about your children," Caramante said. "Especially after what happened at the middle school last year."
In June, a parent entered South Orangetown Middle School in Blauvelt with an unloaded gun and took district Superintendent Ken Mitchell hostage. The parent, Peter Cocker, was reportedly upset by Mitchell’s decision not close schools after reported cases of swine flu.
Cocker pleaded guilty to second-degree kidnapping, a felony, and faces five years in state prison when sentenced Jan. 28.