Fear of a repeat of the Virginia Tech massacre prompted a university to expel a Thai doctoral candidate deemed to have exhibited "aggressive" behaviour, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Saturday.
The student at Illinois State University, whose name was asked to be withheld, was expelled after he showed aggressive, anti-social behavior and repeatedly quarreled with university staffers, the spokesman, Tharit Charungvat, told The Associated Press.
"Lately, he disturbed an exam class by making loud noises. Then, he asked exam supervisors if he had the right to buy a gun," he said.
Tharit said the man, who has studied in the United States since 2003 on a government scholarship, was expelled from the university in the wake of the April 16 campus killings at Virginia Tech.
In that incident, Seung-Hui Cho, a South Korean immigrant, killed 25 students and five professors in classrooms and hallways before turning a gun on himself.
Tharit said the ministry had no information if the student had any record of seeking mental-health treatment.
{{/usCountry}}Tharit said the ministry had no information if the student had any record of seeking mental-health treatment.
{{/usCountry}}The Thai student was detained by police on April 26 and is currently being detained by the US Department of Homeland Security, he said.