On March 12th at around 12:10 p.m., police were dispatched to the area of 3rd Street and Cleveland Street for a report of a suspicious individual in the area looking over fences and checking trash cans. Due to the proximity of the incident to South Park Elementary, the school was placed on secured status. School staff had informed police they had seen the suspicious individual walking near the perimeter of the school with a hammer. Police arrived and made contact with one of the reporting parties who pointed out the suspicious individual. Police contacted the individual and identified him as 37-year-old Gordon Cosme of Rapid City. After speaking with Cosme, it was determined he had dropped the hammer in a nearby grassy area. Police located the item which turned out to be a hatchet. Cosme was placed under arrest for Possession of a Weapon on School Grounds and Disturbance of School before being transported to the Pennington County Jail. At this time, police have no reason to believe Cosme was in the area in an attempt to harm students at the school.
