Three people died and at least five others suffered injuries requiring transport to hospital when a gunman opened fire on the campus of Michigan State University on Monday evening. The suspect then turned his weapon on himself, according to the police.
“The suspect has been located off campus. It appears he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. There is no longer a threat to the campus and the lockdown notice has been lifted,” campus police confirmed on their Twitter account early Tuesday, four hours after the shooting.
The suspect was described as a “small black man wearing a mask, red shoes, a denim jacket and a cap” by the university’s police department, which also posted photos on social media.
“There are three confirmed deaths. This is in addition to the five victims who have been transported to the hospital,” campus police announced late Monday evening on Twitter.
According to acting deputy campus police chief Chris Rozman, hundreds of police officers were dispatched to the scene to locate and intercept the suspect.
“I can understand that emotions are running high right now. We are doing everything we can to ensure the safety of the campuses and of all our students,” Mr. Rozman said during a press briefing.
In an alert sent shortly after 8:30 p.m., police said “shots were fired during an incident on or near the East Lansing campus in Michigan.
“Take cover,” ordered the police.
Authorities have asked students and staff to self-isolate following the gunshots for several hours, while calling on parents of students to stay away.
In another tweet later, the police mentioned “another shooting” which allegedly left “several injuries”, this time at IM East, a recreation center for students.
The suspect, whose identity has not been released, was seen leaving the leisure center on foot after the two shootings.
WDIV-TV meteorologist Kim Adams, whose daughter attends Michigan State University, told viewers that the students were exhausted from the whole saga.
“They hid, all the lights off, in a dark room,” Ms. Adams mentioned on the air.
“Their cell phones are starting to run out of battery and they don’t all have chargers with them. We know that students are always afraid of ending up with a dead cell phone, but there, losing contact with the outside world is terrifying for them while the suspect is still running, ”she said.
Michigan State University’s East Lansing campus has approximately 50,000 students. All activities on campus have been canceled for the next 48 hours. On Twitter, management asked its entire community to avoid showing up on campus on Tuesday.
The city of East Lansing is located about 145 kilometers northwest of Detroit.