Person of interest arrested in Brown University mass shooting
A person of interest has been arrested in the mass shooting at Brown University that left two people dead and nine others injured, authorities said Sunday morning.
The person is in their 20s but has not been publicly identified. They were arrested at a Hampton Inn in Coventry, R.I., about 15 miles south of Brown’s campus in Providence, according to the FBI.
Cops previously said a man suspected of being the shooter was spotted on surveillance cameras calmly walking away from the scene. He wore dark clothes.
The victims have not been publicly identified, although authorities confirmed they were students at the Ivy League school who were studying for their final exams. A stay-at-home order for Brown and surrounding neighborhoods was lifted Sunday following the arrest.
“Everyone is in shock and we have a lot of recovery ahead of us,” Brown University President Christina Paxson said at a news conference Sunday. “Our community is strong and we will get through this, but this is devastating.”
The shooting began shortly after 4 p.m. Saturday inside the Barus & Holley building, which includes Brown’s engineering school and physics department. The targeted class was hosting a final exam review session, school leaders said.
Cops said the shooter fired 40 rounds from a handgun before fleeing the scene. Officers recovered two 30-round magazines but did not locate the weapon, authorities said Sunday morning.
FBI agents tracked the man to the hotel using geolocation data from his cellphone, FBI Director Kash Patel said in a social media post. They were acting on information from the Providence Police Department. Two handguns were recovered during the arrest, police said.
“We all knew, intellectually, that this could happen anywhere, including here, but it’s not the same as in our community,” Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said Sunday morning.
Brown canceled all remaining classes, exams, assignments and projects for the fall semester, which was scheduled to end Dec. 20. The school told students they could go home.
The shooting occurred hours before another mass shooting halfway around the world, in which 11 people were killed and at least 29 injured in a terrorist attack on Hanukkah celebrations at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia.
With news feed services
