Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested a man in Joslyn Plaza around 2 p.m. on Monday. Aaron Lewis “was not a student” and was carrying a knife, according to Officer Jesse Berg.
Lewis was immediately taken to the Malibu/Lost Hills Sheriff’s station.
Lewis was described as “in his late 20s or early 30s,” according to University Public Relations Officer Tiffany Wright. He was wearing a flannel shirt and dark glasses.
DPS was first alerted after they received a report that Lewis was loitering in the university bookstore near the Waves Cafe.
“Employees saw him walking around and informed their manager the man had been there for a while,” Wright said.
After DPS was called at 1:20 p.m., the LA County Sheriff’s Department was informed of the suspicious activity.
Three sheriff’s patrol cars and a van were dispatched to Pepperdine’s campus, and Lewis was taken into custody after three DPS and four LA County Sheriff’s deputies confronted him in Joslyn Plaza.
Initially, “they took the gentleman into custody because they found a knife on him,” Wright said.
According to the California Penal Code, any person, excluding a “peace officer” who possesses a dirk, dagger, ice pick or knife having a fixed blade longer than 2 1/2 inches upon the grounds of any private university is guilty of a public offense.
“They patted him down … he didn’t resist. It seemed strange there were so many cops and he wasn’t resisting,” senior Katie Morris said.
While Lewis was being arrested, deputies emptied the contents of a bag he was carrying on one of the patrol car’s trunks. Officers discovered another knife, clothing and other miscellaneous items.
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Follow Rivardo Avila Alvarez on Twitter: @ravila27
As published in the Nov. 7 issue of the Pepperdine Graphic.
