Over the weekend, Virginia Tech police discovered a handgun and ammunition cartridges, among other items, in possession of the former Virginia Tech student who allegedly attempted to stab his roommate last week.
Related: Search warrant
The student, Michael Tilrico, who was sophomore mechanical engineering major, was arrested last Wednesday and was banned from campus. He is being charged with attempted malicious wounding.
Upon searching Tilrico's dorm room in Lee Hall, police found shooting glasses, a Gunmaster Universal rifle cleaning rod, a Glock Firearm carrying case, a journal, a receipt for a National Bank deposit box, an external hard drive and shooting targets.
The receipt for the deposit box in addition to a statement from Luke Burris, a friend of Tilrico's, led police to discover a black Taurus Millenium semi-automatic .40 caliber handgun with a total of 270 bullets in the deposit box at the National Bank on South Main Street.
The warrant stated that prior to his arrest, Tilrico approached Burris with a backpack saying that the police were after him and that the backpack contained his hunting knife.
The bag also contained a road atlas, a GPS system, a flashlight, batteries, a water purifier, potassium iodide tablets, a utility tool, fire starter tools and a compass.
Burris also stated in the warrant that Tilrico had become a loner, gained a passion for firearms, began to have academic problems, and was beginning to act strangely.
Tilrico has made statements in the past about harming himself and has previously been evaluated by mental health professionals.
He has been released from holding on $25,000 bail, and is currently living by obligation at his parents' home in Georgetown, Texas.