Police issue arrest warrant for suspect in Brown University attack, sources say
Sources close to the investigation told the BBC’s US partner CBS News that police have issued an arrest warrant for the suspect in the mass shooting at Brown University that left two people dead and nine others injured.
Authorities are currently searching for the person and car the suspect is believed to have rented, according to CBS. They did not publicly identify the suspect.
They are also investigating a possible connection between the shooting at Brown and the killing of a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology two days later.
The search is now in its sixth day; Investigators are knocking on doors, requesting home security videos and appealing to the public for tips on finding the gunman.
Police in Providence, Rhode Island, had their news conference planned for Thursday afternoon abruptly canceled, but they said they expected to have an update later in the day.
Authorities told CBS sources on Thursday that they are investigating possible connections between the shooting of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) nuclear science and engineering professor and his death two days later.
Nuno F Gomes Loureiro, 47, of Portugal, was shot “multiple times” Monday at his home in Brookline, Massachusetts, about 50 miles from Providence.
Sources told CBS that police have issued an arrest warrant for a suspect. Sources said a rental car matching the same description was seen at both scenes.
Federal authorities had previously said there was no connection between the two murders.
On Wednesday, authorities released a photo of a person they believe is close to the primary person of interest.
Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said they wanted to speak with anyone “who may have information related to the investigation.”
The chief also stated that the killer “could be anywhere,” adding that “we don’t know where the person is or who he is.”
The day before, police showed footage of a suspicious person seen wandering around the college campus wearing a black mask covering his mouth, possibly “guarding” the area before the crime, Perez said.
The public has expressed disappointment that the mass shooting investigation has made little progress so far.
In response, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said he believed the killer would be caught, “and it’s only a matter of time before we catch him.”
The FBI has offered a reward of $50,000 (£37,350) for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the attack.
The attack occurred at Brown University’s Barus & Holley engineering building during final exams.
Authorities identified the two students killed as Ella Cook, a sophomore from Alabama, and Uzbek-American freshman Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov.
