US: Las Vegas university shooter, who killed 3, was professor
Three individuals lost their lives, while one more person was critically injured in a shooting at a Las Vegas university in the United States (US) on Wednesday. The incident took place at Las Vegas' University of Nevada (UNLV), and authorities have yet to identify the victims. The gunman was later shot dead by officers who rushed to the site on Wednesday evening.
Las Vegas university shooter's alleged identity
A law enforcement source told CNN that the shooter was a 67-year-old career college professor and had links to colleges in North Carolina and Georgia. A law enforcement official also told the Associated Press that he had unsuccessfully sought a job at UNLV. Meanwhile, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Sheriff Kevin McMahill said that the police have confirmed the identity of the suspect, but it will not be released until his family is notified.
Professor describes hearing gunfire on campus
As per the LVMPD, they had responded to calls around midday and indicated that officers had engaged a suspect on the campus. Several visuals showed police vehicles moving near containment lines and dozens of young people being escorted out of the campus. The university campus, located approximately 3 kilometers east of the Las Vegas Strip, reportedly boasts a student enrollment of 25,000 undergraduates and 8,000 doctoral candidates and post-graduates.
Visuals of students being escorted out
Campus closed as police continue search: Sheriff
LVMPD Sheriff McMahill later told the media that there was no longer any threat to the community. However, the main campus and other branches of the university were closed for the day "out of an abundance of caution." Cops were also searching through every building on the sprawling grounds to make sure there weren't "additional victims or subjects," he added.
You can watch McMahill's media address here
Police provide details on shootings inside university campus
Earlier, the police took to X (formerly Twitter) to confirm that shots had been reported near Beam Hall, a building inside the campus that houses the business school and other facilities. In another post, the police stated that there was an additional report of shots being fired in the Student Union wing of the campus.
US reported more than 600 mass shooting incidents in 2023
Mass shootings are a major problem in America, with the country reporting a large number of shooting incidents on a yearly basis. According to the Gun Violence Archive, America has reported over 600 mass shootings in 2023 alone. The nongovernmental body describes mass shootings as "four or more people are shot or killed in a single incident, not including the shooter."
Recalling 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting incident
In 2017, a lone gunman opened fire from the 32nd floor of a Las Vegas hotel room, killing almost 60 people and wounding over 500 more. The shooter, identified as Stephen Paddock, 64, was found dead in his room at the Mandalay Bay hotel with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. While the motive for the shooting remained undetermined, the incident remains the deadliest mass shooting by a single gunman in US history.
