Two students were killed and nine others injured after a gunman opened fire at Brown University on Saturday. Despite little information about the actual suspect, witnesses described the attacker as yelling something before firing in a classroom full of students.
Rachel Friedberg, an economics professor, told local media outlet Ocean State Radio: “He said that the shooter came in the doors, yelled something – he couldn’t remember what he yelled – and started shooting. Students started to scramble to try to get away from the shooter, trying to get lower down in the stadium seating, and people got shot.”The incident occurred at around 4 pm local time in a classroom on the first floor of the seven-storey building. Final exams were taking place at the time. Investigators have not confirmed how the gunman gained access to the classroom, which requires badge entry. Two students were killed, and nine others were injured, including one in critical condition and seven in stable condition, according to Providence Mayor Brett Smiley. Brown University President Christina Paxson said all victims were students. “This is a day that we hoped never would come to our community. It is deeply devastating for all of us,” she said. The university is supporting the families of the deceased students, reports the BBC. A person of interest in their 30s has been arrested in connection with the shooting. He is not a student at Brown and was detained overnight in a hotel, law enforcement sources said. Police previously released CCTV footage showing a male suspect walking away from the scene wearing all black, with a covered face. No weapon was visible, and a sweep of the building on Saturday did not recover a firearm.Following the attack, some areas of campus remained restricted as police continued investigations. Around 2,000 students were relocated to safe locations overnight, and Brown University cancelled all remaining exams, papers, and projects.US President Donald Trump described the incident as “a terrible thing” on his Truth Social and said: “All we can do right now is pray for the victims and for those that were very badly hurt.”The attack brings the total number of mass shootings in the US this year to 389, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as four or more victims killed or injured, excluding the attacker.