Man arrested after drugs, weapons found in UF bathroom, police say

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) - University of Florida Police Officers arrested Stephon Coney, 29, after a loaded handgun and over a pound of marijuana were found in a bathroom Tuesday.

Officers said they responded to a call that Coney was seen reentering a unisex bathroom in Little Hall, after they had already spoken to him earlier that morning for entering the same bathroom.

Officers said that because they had already spoken to Coney that morning, they believed that he was using the bathroom for camping or illegal activities.

When they responded to the second call Tuesday night, Officers were given a description that Coney was carrying a backpack when he entered the bathroom. After exiting the bathroom with Officers present, Coney was no longer wearing the backpack.

Officers then searched the bathroom and found a crawl space that stored the backpack; inside was a loaded 9mm handgun and about 1.3 pounds of marijuana. Also inside the crawl space was a .40 caliber handgun, a digital scale, ammunition, a handgun holster, Sierra Leon currency bills, clothing, and shoes.

Coney denied any ownership of the items found, despite an Alachua County Tax Collector’s Office receipt with his name on it being found in the backpack.

Coney was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of controlled substances with the intent to sell within 1,000 feet of a college, and possession of a firearm on school property.

Coney is being held at the Alachua County Jail on $127,000 bond.

UFPD Police Chief Bart C. Knowles provided the following statement to TV20:

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