What to know about the investigations into the Brown University shooting and the killing of an MIT professor:
- The suspect in the Dec. 13 mass shooting on the campus of Brown University was found dead by suicide Thursday night in a storage unit in Salem, New Hampshire, authorities said. He has been identified as 48-year-old Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, a former Brown grad student. Two students were killed and nine were wounded in the shooting.
- Valente is also believed to be responsible for the shooting death of an MIT professor two days later in Brookline, Massachusetts, federal prosecutors said late Thursday.
- Officials said the suspect previously attended the same university in Portugal as the MIT professor who was killed, 47-year-old Nuno Loureiro. Both studied physics and are believed to have known each other.
- An autopsy report released Friday showed the suspect is estimated to have died on Tuesday, Dec. 16.
- The Brown shooting occurred in the school’s Barus & Holley engineering building during final exams, in a first-floor classroom where students were taking part in a study session.
- Prior to Thursday, investigators had struggled to obtain clear security images of the person of interest in the Brown University shooting, or determine his possible whereabouts in the wake of the shooting.
Providence mayor requests “John” gets FBI reward
Providence Mayor Mark Smiley sent a letter to the FBI requesting that “John,” who was key in leading police to identify the Brown University shooting suspect, be paid the full $50,000 reward that the bureau previously offered for information about the attack.
In a letter to FBI Director Kash Patel, Smiley called “John” a hero whose “bravery, selflessness and stewardship on behalf of his community went far beyond what anyone could ever hope from a tip.”
“I believe that our community is breathing easier today because of the extraordinary assistance John provided to our law enforcement agencies,” he continued. “I am writing to you today to request the entirety of the $50,000 reward be issued to this incredible Providence neighbor.”…