Student with Edgartown ties arrested on gun charge

Bergeron allegedly told classmate he had a friend with AR-15 on “stand-by.”

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Gabe Bergeron, shown here in his senior photo at MVRHS, was arrested on charges involving a gun, ammo and drugs.

A Salem State University student from Edgartown was arraigned Monday on charges of illegal possession of a handgun, ammunition, and drugs found in his dorm room.

Gabe Bergeron, 22, turned himself in to Salem District Court Monday after learning Salem State campus police had obtained a warrant charging him with carrying a dangerous weapon on school grounds, and possession of Xanax and over 10 ounces of marijuana.

He was released on $2,500 cash bail, and is due back in court Feb. 5 for a pretrial hearing.

Salem State University police obtained a search warrant for Bergeron’s dorm room and recovered a registered .45 caliber Ruger handgun, two loaded 10 round Ruger magazines, two boxes of ammunition with 80 rounds of ammo, 9½ Xanax pills, and 12.74 ounces of marijuana.

On Dec. 5, a fellow Salem State student went to the Salem State University police to report that Bergeron possessed a handgun and kept it in a safe underneath his bed in his dorm room.

The student said Bergeron showed him the handgun one night while the two were in Bergeron’s dorm room, and he had seen it on Bergeron’s bed the next day.

Bergeron told the student he also had a person with an AR-15 rifle “on standby for him, in case he needed protection,” according to the university police report.

On Dec. 5, university police interviewed Bergeron’s roommate, who told them he had seen Bergeron in possession of a handgun. The roommate also told police Bergeron smokes marijuana and consumes Xanax regularly.

Bergeron is also being charged with malicious destruction of property over $1,200 and disturbing the peace for a Nov. 30 incident at his dorm building, according to a criminal complaint filed in Salem District Court.

Bergeron told university police he locked himself out of his dorm building and crawled in through a broken window.

The university issued a statement through spokesman Nicole Giambusso: “A student was arraigned on Monday for illegal possession of a handgun, ammunition, and narcotics. The university has issued a ‘no trespass’ order, barring the student from campus as the investigation continues. We are unable to comment further while the investigation is ongoing.”

College President John Keenan also sent an email to those on campus about the arrest. “I am grateful to our university police for their work addressing this situation,” he wrote. “Such alleged behavior goes against who we are as a university and what we expect from our students. While news of this arrest is troubling, I am grateful for the professional staff we have in place to manage such matters. Please be assured that as president, safety is my top priority. With that in mind, the university has issued a no-trespass order, barring this student from campus while the investigation is ongoing.”

The Times reached Bergeron by phone, but he declined to comment.

10 COMMENTS

  1. I wouldnt read alot into this. Island kids have a difficult time coping with the outside world.

  2. Just the facts, this student had:

    – A legally registered hand-gun that he brought to his home for his own protection which he kept in a safe. While this violated University policy, that’s hardly a subject for arrest.

    – Some anti-anxiety medication.

    – too much of a decriminalized drug.

    – Here-say from another student.

    Feels sensationalized to me. Poor fella.

    • Student had a gun/ammo on his college campus. Illegal.
      Student had Xanax. Remains to be seen if he had a prescription.
      Student had 12+ oz, of pot. Illegal (and a lot).
      Student had previous police encounter same week on campus/broken glass.
      But go ahead and call him a poor fella. Sad he will end up a convicted felon, let alone a 5 year senior. I’m betting he never completes his degree,

  3. And an AR-15 rifle on “standby”. How can any thinking person think that it is sensationalizing a story when a grown man who happens to be a college student, who should have already graduated, combines using drugs and keeping guns? In his dorm room? I hope this dangerous man never again gets access to a gun.

    • I don’t want to speculate on anything else but…you have no idea why he hasn’t finished school. Some people have to pay for college themselves. Maybe he had to take time off to work?

      • Yes, we all know why this man is not finishing college. His school has barred him from the campus because of the felony charges against him.

        • That’s all after the fact. Are you aware of the reason he hadn’t finished school in a more timely fashion before this happened? I’m not defending his actions.

      • Also, guns, ammo and drugs are expensive. Are you worried about that, too? His bail for his felony offense costs his parents 1/4 of a year’s tuition at a state school. Don’t miss the point of the seriousness of the criminal conduct for which this man has been charged and the danger he posed to all in the school community.

  4. A little disturbing to see the commentators here are pretty much not concerned about this. ( Jackie not withstanding ) . my guess is if he were Bazillion or Hispanic, the tone would be a bit different.
    And I just want to point out to the “conservatives” here that this white person is out on bail that is lower than the going price of the drugs he had. I wonder where the ar 15 is ?

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