A student at North Platte Community College is facing a felony charge after law enforcement found him in possession of a gun on campus.

On the morning of September 2, staff members at NPCC requested a Nebraska State Patrol canine unit after they smelled the odor of drugs coming from inside one of the school’s north campus housing units.

The canine conducted a sweep of the units and alerted to the odor of drugs in one of them.

As a result, law enforcement conducted a search of the unit and located drug paraphernalia and a .22 caliber pistol.

The occupant of the unit, 19-year-old Alexander Maestas, of Sidney, was placed under arrest.

He was transported to the Lincoln County Detention Center and charged with felony possession of a firearm on school grounds and possession of drug paraphernalia, an infraction.

According to Nebraska statutes, any person who possesses a firearm in a school, on school grounds, in a school-owned vehicle, or at a school-sponsored activity or athletic event is guilty of the offense of unlawful possession of a firearm at a school. Unlawful possession of a firearm at a school is a Class IV felony.