The manhunt for the shooter who opened fire in a final exam study session at Brown University on Saturday, killing two students and wounding another nine, remains ongoing after authorities announced Sunday night that a “person of interest” they had detained was being released.
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“We know that this is likely to cause fresh anxiety for our community,” Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said during a late Sunday press conference as he sought to address public concerns about safety. “We believe that you remain safe in our community, though we will continue to have an enhanced police presence throughout the city and on the Brown campus.”
A 24-year-old person of interest was taken into custody Sunday after the FBI fielded a tip that led investigators to the individual, Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez said during the press conference. But Perez said that following an investigation, authorities had insufficient evidence to prosecute the individual.
“We have not yet solved this case,” said Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha, “but I’m confident we’re going to do that, and I am confident we’re going to do that in the very near future.”
Smiley asked anyone with information about the shooting to come forward as law enforcement continues to scour for additional video evidence. Officials said there was limited surveillance footage because the building where the shooting happened is “an old building attached to a new one” and doesn’t contain many cameras. Community members, Smiley added, should expect to see officers going door to door as they look for more video evidence.
“We do have a small, short clip of video footage that we do believe is the person that we’re looking for,” the mayor said Monday on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “And right now we don’t have any evidence to suggest that it was more than that individual which has been seen in that video.”
The shooting occurred in Brown’s Barus & Holley engineering and physics building at around 4 p.m. on Saturday, according to university President Christina Paxson. Paxson said Sunday that seven of the victims wounded in the attack were in critical but stable condition, while one remained in critical condition.
The College Republicans of America identified one of the students killed in the attack as Ella Cook, the vice president of the Brown College Republicans.
“Ella was known for her bold, brave, and kind heart as she served her chapter and her fellow classmates,” the national organization wrote in a post on X.
The other student killed in the attack was identified as Muhammad Aziz Umurzakov by the Uzbekistan Foreign Affairs Ministry.
“He was very kind, smart. Attended talented and gifted schools,” Umurzokov’s aunt, Karina Gabit, told NBC News. He “wanted to be a neurosurgeon ’cause when he was 10 he had a very serious eight-hours-long brain surgery.”
Brown University said in a statement Sunday night that law enforcement did not believe that there were any additional threats to campus or the local community. The school advised students and faculty to expect a continued presence of law enforcement as the investigation continues, however.
“As Providence police continue to lead this investigation, they have informed Brown that they are continuing their search efforts, which includes ongoing coordination with multiple agencies,” the university said. “There continues to be a heightened amount of local, state and federal police activity in the area as law enforcement continues to investigate and patrol with increased vigilance.”
Smiley said that he did not intend to reinstate a shelter-in-place advisory that had previously been lifted following the detainment of the person of interest. Providence Public Schools still opened on Monday, though several other private schools in the area remained closed in light of the shooting, according to the Providence Journal. Brown has cancelled classes and exams for the remainder of the semester.
Saturday’s attack happened on the eve of the 13th anniversary of the Sandy Hook shooting, which took the lives of 26 victims, including 20 elementary school students. At least two students at Brown were survivors of a previous school shooting.
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