A gunman opened fire in a building at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on Wednesday, killing three people and wounding a fourth before dying in a shootout with police, CBS News reports. While authorities have not released the assailant’s name, the Las Vegas news outlet KLAS-TV has identified him as a white 67-year-old former college professor.
Per CBS, the shooting began a little before noon on the fourth floor of the business school’s Frank and Estella Beam Hall, prompting staff, faculty, and students — many of whom were studying for finals next week — to shelter in locked classrooms and offices. According to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, both metropolitan and university police responded to the scene within minutes, engaging the gunman outside of the building and killing him. “People started running and everything,” a UNLV junior told the New York Times. “At first, it didn’t seem real.”
The victims have not yet been publicly identified. CBS reports that the injured individual is in stable condition, while police say four others were hospitalized after experiencing panic attacks. Police have not declared a motive in the case, but sources for KLAS-TV say the gunman had recently applied for a job at the university and was turned down. The outlet further reports that he “may have had a connection to a person who works on campus.”
At a press conference, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s sheriff, Kevin McMahill, noted there was a gathering of people eating and building Lego sets outside of the hall at the time of the shooting and that more deaths might have occurred had officers not responded quickly.
“No student should have to fear pursuing their dreams on a college campus,” McMahill said in a statement. UNLV will remain closed for at least the rest of the week, according to the university police chief.
