On Saturday April 20, at about 2:40 p.m., the Johnson City Police were called to the Johnson City High School sports complex for a report of a suspicious male.
The suspicious male was later identified as Colin Williams, a parent from another school district. Responding officers were advised that Williams had approached a female track athlete, grabbed her, began to escort her toward the parking lot while telling her to leave with him. Officers were advised that Williams was being detained by coaches.
JCPD officers arrived and placed Williams in handcuffs. As officers stood Williams up from his prone position, they observed him to be in possession of a loaded hand gun. The gun was secured and was later identified as a 10mm Glock hand gun. Williams was brought to the JCPD for further investigation.
JCPD detectives responded to further assist with the investigation. Through the course of the investigation, it was determined that Williams was intoxicated and believed his daughter was at the track meet and believed the female he grabbed was his daughter. After realizing the female was not his daughter, he walked away from her but continued searching for his daughter. A short time later he observed the same female he had previously interacted with and began running toward her. It was at this time that the female and her teammate notified their coaches.
Coaches from the Horseheads and Owego track teams and JC staff members then approached Williams and detained him. While awaiting police arrival, coaches secured a knife that Williams was in possession of.
It was further discovered that Williams does possess a valid NYS pistol permit, although the law does not allow him to carry firearms on school grounds. Neither the knife or firearm were displayed or threatened during this incident.
Williams was charged with the following NYS Penal law offenses:
- Endangering the welfare of a child – a class A Misdemeanor
- Criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds – a class E Felony
Williams was processed and brought to Broome County central arraignment. Williams was arraigned and remanded to the custody of the Broome County Correctional Facility.
The Johnson City Police Department would like to extend their gratitude to the coaches and staff members of the various school districts that were involved in this incident. Their alertness, vigilance, and professionalism diffused what was a dangerous situation without injury.
