Armed man accused of breaking into Irving Park Elementary School faces federal charges

GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) – The armed man accused of breaking into Irving Park Elementary School is now facing federal charges.

New documents are giving us insight into who Jonathan Coley, 26, is and the guns he allegedly had access to.

The feds got involved for two reasons. First, Coley is considered a “prohibited person” in the eyes of the federal government, meaning he’s not allowed to own guns. A judge recently made this decision because of Coley’s admission to federal investigations about his history of substance abuse.

The second reason involves where the gun he allegedly brought into the school came from. A nine-page probable cause affidavit gives us more details surrounding Coley’s alleged break-in at the school.

The documents say Coley allegedly showed up at Irving Park Elementary on April 13 at 5:23 a.m., which was more than 20 minutes before the documents say he entered the school. They reveal Coley showed up, left the property and then allegedly came back with a gun and got into the school through a door leading to the gym at about 5:48 a.m.

Investigators were able to identify the car Coley was driving and found it parked at his last known address about a mile from the school. They talked with the homeowner, who told investigators Coley was abusing drugs and sleeping in a rental truck. The homeowner also said he and two others had taken away Coley’s guns.

Investigators were able to confiscate five guns along with ammo and accessories they believe belong to the 26-year-old. Officers arrested Coley and said they found 76 grams of THC edibles, 38 grams of packaged marijuana and ammo.

In Coley’s interview with investigators, the affidavit shows he admitted he was a drug addict and used meth two to three times per day.

When asked why he was at the school with a gun, it says Coley mentioned voices in his head and described the sound of someone screaming and pop sounds, which sounded like gunshots.

The documents say Coley talked about entering the school, shouting a name and shouting “Is everybody OK?” to make sure no one was in the school.

Special agents examined the gun Coley is accused of bringing inside, which they say was a nine-millimeter rifle with an aiming optic device attached, and found it was manufactured outside the state of North Carolina. This is one of the reasons federal agents got involved in the case because the gun had crossed over state lines.

Currently, Coley is being held under no bond as a federal inmate at the Guilford County Detention Center.

FOX8 did reach out to Coley’s attorney, who’s defending him on his state charges related to the Irving Park Elementary break-in.

Shaketa Berrie said she’s working with a federal public defender to make sure they’re able to defend Coley against the federal and state allegations.

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