A 31-year-old man has been charged with operating a methamphetamine lab inside Michigan State University’s Wells Hall, according to the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety.
Xin Tong was arraigned Wednesday and is being held in the Ingham County Jail on a $500,000 cash or surety bond.
He faces felony charges of operating or maintaining a methamphetamine lab involving controlled substances and malicious destruction of a building over $20,000.
Wells Hall will remain closed through May 1 as investigators gather evidence and crews assess and clean damage inside the building.
The following statement was released at around 6 p.m. Wednesday:
Dear Campus Community,
First and foremost, we want to thank you for your patience, cooperation and understanding this week as the MSU Department of Police and Public Safety (DPPS), along with various campus units, have been working non-stop to address a developing situation regarding Wells Hall. There continues to be no risk to our campus community and your safety remains our top priority.
We know the closure of Wells Hall has raised concern among members of our community, inconvenienced students, faculty and staff scheduled to work and take final exams in the building, and added to what is an already busy time at the end of the semester.
This past week, DPPS responded to reports of property damage inside Wells Hall. The damage to the building is directly related to alleged criminal activity. Due to the fact that this is an open and active investigation, I am limited to sharing all of the facts of the case at this time. However, I felt it was important to share as much information as possible without compromising the investigation.
DPPS identified a suspect connected to these incidents. MSU police officers made contact with that individual inside Wells Hall on Sunday, April 26, 2026, and ultimately identified multiple substances that can be legally purchased in retail stores or online. The chemicals include sodium hydroxide pellets, hydrochloric acid, methanol, isopropyl alcohol, acetone, and butane. Multiple tests performed by the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) confirm the environment in Wells Hall does not pose a risk to our community.
We developed probable cause to arrest the suspect. The case was presented to the Ingham County Prosecutor’s Office, and felony criminal charges have been issued.
While the university had hoped to open Wells Hall on Tuesday, April 28, the decision was made to keep the building closed, relocate exams, and provide ample time to allow DPPS to gather evidence, EHS to inspect the building, clean and assess damage to flooring, fixtures and other surfaces, and work with Infrastructure Planning and Facilities (IPF) to remediate and ultimately restore the impacted spaces.
Again, this is an ongoing investigation. If you feel you have any information that may be useful to the DPPS investigation, please email tips@dpps.msu.edu or call 844-99MSUPD (844-996-7873).
Thank you for your understanding as we work diligently to address these circumstances and continue to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our community.
Sincerely,
Mike Yankowski
Police Chief
MSU Department of Police and Public Safety
