SOUTH SENECA, NY (CortacaToday) – A longtime groundskeeper in the South Seneca Central School District is charged with allegedly keeping a gun on school grounds.

On Tuesday, October 1, 2024, 62-year-old Everett Babcock, of Ovid, was arrested and charged with felony criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds. The preceding investigation began immediately after a resource officer at South Seneca Junior/Senior High School was alerted to the possibility of a weapon.

Authorities located a .22 caliber long rifle and ammunition in a maintenance building. Deputies with the Seneca County Sheriff’s Office and school officials deemed it was an isolated incident, and there was no immediate threat to students or faculty. However, South Seneca Superintendent Stephen Zielinski says it’s no excuse.

“On Tuesday afternoon this week we learned that our employee had been accused of keeping a firearm unsecured on our campus, and we are grateful for the Seneca County Sheriff’s Office’s swift action in response,” said Zielinski in a statement. “Safety and security [have] always been, and will always be, a primary concern for the district, and in 2024 no one should have any confusion about bringing firearms of any kind into a school district. We will cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation.”

Babcock is scheduled to appear in Ovid Town Court on October 15, 2024.