Joseph Robert Bruneau. Courtesy | JailTracker
Joseph Robert Bruneau was arrested on a warrant for domestic assault at close to 3 a.m. Thursday, according to an Oct. 12 email from Joe Kellam, Hillsdale College director of security and emergency management.
Bruneau was driving near Allen when he was caught, Kellam said. Officers with the Michigan State Police arrested him, according to JailTracker.
“As a precautionary measure and until we know more, we will remain in our increased security status,” Kellam said.
The warrant was not connected to anything that happened at Hillsdale College, according to Kellam. The warrant stemmed from an Oct. 9 incident, according to JailTracker. Bruneau cannot be released on bond, which was set at $20,000, and will appear in Hillsdale District Court for arraignment on Oct. 13.
The college locked building doors after Hillsdale College Security warned in an Oct. 9 email that the 54-year-old Bruneau was in the area, and was “potentially assaultive and predatory.” Security had been patrolling campus and the surrounding area to find Bruneau.
“This subject was on campus recently and is known to wear Hillsdale College attire,” Kellam said. “We will be implementing locked doors.”
The City of Hillsdale Police Department told security Bruneau was in the area, and security had taken reports of him on campus, according to Kellam.
“Do not approach or engage with this individual,” he said. “Please be aware that anything you post on social media is potentially visible to him also.”
The security email included a surveillance photo that captured Bruneau entering Mossey Library wearing a hat, glasses, and a blue Hillsdale College sweatshirt.
Senior Emilie Moneyhon said she was talking to friends about Jordan Peterson in Howard Music Hall on Oct. 2 when Bruneau approached the group.
“He was like ‘Oh yeah, that Jordan Peterson guy is from Canada. He got fired from a free speech problem,’” Moneyhon said, adding that the group assumed he was a friend of the college.
Senior Anna Julia Bassols said when Moneyhon told her about the encounter, she remembered seeing Bruneau leave Howard the same day.
“I figured it was a parent or someone visiting,” Bassols said. “When she was describing it, I remembered, ‘Oh my gosh, that was the guy I had seen.’”
According to Bassols, students have been vigilant about keeping each other safe. She said residents of Manning Street checked on a suspicious situation Tuesday night.
“Everyone in my house heard this blood-curdling scream,” Bassols said. “It was probably nothing. It could have been someone trying to mess with us.”
But students from several houses went outside and checked to make sure everyone was safe.
“The guys waited until we went back home to return,” Bassols said. “It made me feel a lot safer knowing that everyone was paying attention and on the lookout.”
Kellam said students should download the RAVE Guardian app in case of emergencies. He reminded students to carry IDs to enter buildings and avoid holding doors open for anyone they do not know.
