St. Cloud State wrestler arrested, receives two felony gun charges
SAINT CLOUD – A St. Cloud State wrestler has been charged with two felony offenses after allegedly firing a gun in his off-campus apartment Thursday night.
According to St. Cloud Police Department Commander Lori Ellering, Nathan Rocheleau was arrested Friday morning after the department received a complaint and served a warrant to retrieve the firearm.
“At about 9 o’clock we were called to the 500 block of 8th Avenue South for a gun complaint that Rocheleau had fired a firearm – not at anybody in particular – but had recklessly discharged it in the apartment the night before,” Ellering said in a phone interview Monday with the St. Cloud Times.
Alcohol was alleged to be involved, and the 21-year-old was charged with intentionally discharging a firearm under circumstances that endanger the safety of another, and recklessly discharging a firearm within a municipality. If convicted, both charges carry sentences of imprisonment for not more than two years, or payment of a fine of not more than $5,000, or both.
Rocheleau was suspended from team activities "per the department's code of conduct," according to a statement Tuesday from St. Cloud State Athletics.
He was listed as a redshirt sophomore on the 2023-24 roster. He went 5-6 last season at 141 pounds and tallied two pins. Before college, Rocheleau had over 100 wins at Gering High School in western Nebraska, including an individual state gold medal his junior year and a Class B team title in 2021.
St. Cloud State bans weapons on university property with few exceptions but does not have policies against student firearm possession in off-campus housing. The firearm was legally possessed, according to Ellering.
“St Cloud State University will actively work to prevent, reduce, and manage acts of violence by supporting criminal prosecution of those who threaten or commit violence against its employees, students, and visitors,” reads a SCSU violence and weapons policy.
This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: St. Cloud State wrestler arrested after shooting gun in apartment
