Several hours after he allegedly opened fire on a bus full of students returning from a field trip, a suspect in a shooting at the University of Virginia that claimed the lives of three members of the University of Virginia football team was in custody on Monday.
At a press conference, university police announced that student Christopher Darnell Jones, 22, had been detained several hours after the shooting that occurred at the 25,000-student institution in Charlottesville, Virginia, at 10:30 p.m. on Sunday (0330 GMT on Monday).
Minutes after the shooting, school officials issued alerts on social media telling students and staff to shelter in place with one tweet saying to “RUN HIDE FIGHT.” The sprawling campus remained on alert throughout the night and morning as law enforcement officers conducted a massive manhunt for Jones.
University President Jim Ryan identified the slain students as Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis and D’Sean Perry.
Chandler and Perry died on the scene, while Davis died of his wounds at a hospital. Two other students were wounded and taken to UVA Medical Center, where one is in good condition and another in critical condition, University Police Chief Tim Longo said.
The shooting unfolded on a bus full of students after it pulled into a parking garage on campus, Ryan said. The students had just returned from a class field trip to see a play in Washington, D.C.
The shooting unfolded on a bus full of students after it pulled into a parking garage on campus, Ryan said. The students had just returned from a class field trip to see a play in Washington, D.C.