PROVIDENCE (Rhode Island, US), Dec 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A manhunt was continuing after a mass shooting at elite Brown University left two dead and nine wounded and US authorities said they were releasing a man initially detained as a person of interest.
The shooting took place on Saturday in a building where exams were underway on the Ivy League campus in Providence, Rhode Island. A man with a rifle burst in and opened fire before fleeing.
News that a person was being held indicated a breakthrough, with FBI Director Kash Patel announcing that local police had given federal investigations a lead.
But authorities had to walk this back, saying late on Sunday that there was not enough evidence to connect the person to the shooting.
“I think it’s fair to say there’s no basis to consider him,” Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said.
A lockdown and shelter-in-place order went into effect immediately after the shooting, as heavily armed officers flooded the area. But the latest news meant renewed fears for the college town and state capital.
“We know that this is likely to cause fresh anxiety for our community,” Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said.
All the victims were students. Of the nine wounded, one was in critical condition, seven were in stable condition and one has been discharged, Smiley said.
Police released 10 seconds of footage of the suspect, seen from behind, walking briskly down a deserted street after apparently opening fire inside a first-floor classroom.
The attack is the latest incident of mass shooting in a country where attempts to restrict access to firearms face political deadlock.
There have been more than 300 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as four or more people shot.
During a Christmas event Sunday at the White House, President Donald Trump spoke briefly about the shooting, saying “things can happen” and wishing the injured to “get well fast”.
The deadliest school shooting in US history took place at Virginia Tech on Apr 16, 2007, when South Korean student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life. — NNN-AGENCIES