Recruit Allegedly Threatened Mass Shooting At NH Police Academy Graduation

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LACONIA, N.H. (CBS/AP) — A police recruit has been accused of making threats about a mass shooting to take place at his upcoming graduation from New Hampshire's police academy.

Police arrested 24-year-old Noah Beaulieu, of Concord. They said he was a recruit from the Laconia Police Department at the New Hampshire Police Standards and Training Academy until Wednesday.

Beaulieu was scheduled to be arraigned Thursday. It wasn't immediately known if he had a lawyer and a phone number couldn't be found for him.

Noah Beaulieu. (Image Credit: Laconia Police)

Beaulieu was an Army veteran who was hired in May and completed an academy six-week training program. He was working to complete a 16-week program with New Hampshire State Police.

Laconia Police Chief Matthew Canfield said Beaulieu is accused of making several comments to his squad mates that he was going to bring "large capacity firearms" to graduation, scheduled for Friday. He also allegedly said other recruits and officers would be killed in crossfire when he discharged his service weapon at the ceremony.

State and Laconia Police launched an internal affairs investigation and Beaulieu was stripped of his badge and gun and immediately suspended. After interviewing classmates, police charged Beaulieu with criminal threatening, with enhanced penalties because he was a police officer when the threats were made.

Police could not obtain enough evidence for a search warrant for Beaulieu's home, so it is not known if he possesses weapons or ammo.