Michigan State University shooting live updates: At least 3 killed and suspect dead
Citizen's tip led police to MSU shooting suspect
A tip from an observant citizen ultimately led police to close in on Michigan State University shooting suspect Anthony Mcrae late Monday night, police said.
"Because of our quick release of the photograph from the campus security cameras and the help from our community, it was a caller’s tip that led law enforcement to that suspect in the city of Lansing," Chris Rozman, MSU police interim deputy chief, said.
"We cannot thank the public, and the community, and the person who called in that report enough for being observant, for following our messaging, and being vigilant and contacting us immediately," he said.
He said a weapon was recovered, but no details were shared.
A search warrant was also executed on residence "that was connected to the suspect in this case," Rozman said, without disclosing where that home was.
Share this -Students broke open a window and jumped out, survivor says
Claire Papoulias was attending a class about Cuban history inside Berkey Hall, sitting right in the middle of the third or fourth row among approximately 30 students, when the gunman opened fire from behind her on Monday night, she said.
"I could hear gunshots like directly behind my head. And I could see the smoke, gunpowder or something from the weapon firing," she told NBC's TODAY show, adding, "immediately I dropped to the floor with all my classmates."
"I felt super spaced out and my heart dropped and my chest just tightened," she said. "I thought that I was gonna die," she said.
Students screamed for help while some scrambled to break open a window, allowing classmates to escape.
"I remember I just ran for my life," she said.
Share this -'We have no idea what the motive was,' police say
Questions still remain as to what motivated and precipitated the shooting at Michigan State University on Monday night.
“We have absolutely no idea what the motive was at this point," Chris Rozman of the Michigan State University Police said at Tuesday morning's briefing.
Police say the suspect had no ties to the school.
"We can confirm that the 43-year-old suspect had no affiliation to the university. He was not a student, faculty, or staff, current or previous," Rozman said.
"That’s an unknown right now. That’s what we’re trying to understand, why this incident occurred. We don’t have an answer right now and that’s the honest truth," he added.
Share this -Share this -MSU shooting suspect identified as Anthony Mcrae, 43
Police identified the suspect in the MSU shooting as 43-year-old Anthony Mcrae on Tuesday morning.
The first call regarding the shooting came in before 8:30 p.m. Monday and culminated with the suspect located at 11:35 p.m. in Lansing. Mcrae died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Chris Rozman with Michigan State University Police said.
"The suspect was located by units that were assisting in looking for that suspect after the shootings," he said.
Officials previously said he had no ties to the university.
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All victims in MSU shooting were students, officials say
The three people killed in Monday night's MSU shooting, as well as the five people injured and hospitalized, were all MSU students, university police said Tuesday morning.
Their names were not released.
Share this -5 injured remain in critical condition
The five people injured in Monday night's shooting at Michigan State University remain in critical condition as of Tuesday morning, hospital officials said at an early news briefing.
Dr. Denny Martin, the interim president and chief medical officer of E.W. Sparrow Hospital in Lansing, broke down in tears while speaking of the hospital staff's response to the shooting.
"Four of those individuals did require surgical intervention. One did not and was taken to the critical care unit after being triaged," he said.
He praised hospital staffers who rose to the occasion to provide urgent care. “We received a lot of texts that were just, 'I'm on my way,' people showing up where they needed be," Martin said. "It was a sad but very proud night for all of us here."
The identities of the five people injured have not yet been released.
Share this -Officials to provide update shortly
Officials will provide an update on the shooting at 8 a.m. ET, MSU police said in a tweet.
"The next media briefing will take place at 8 a.m. ET at the Henry Center for Executive Development — 3535 Forest Rd, Lansing, MI 48910," police said.
Share this -Biden has spoken with Michigan Gov. Whitmer about shooting
President Joe Biden spoke to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Monday evening, a White House official told NBC News.
"The President spoke to Governor Whitmer this evening about the shooting at Michigan State University," the official said.
"The FBI and additional federal law enforcement are already on campus to support local and state response efforts underway," the official added.
Share this -MSU shooting a 'flashback' for Oxford High survivors
Less than a hundred miles away from Oxford High School, where Andrea Ferguson's daughter survived a mass shooting in 2021, Michigan State University became the ground for another attack she found herself trapped in Monday night.
Ferguson, whose daughter recently started her first semester at MSU, told NBC affiliate WDIV she "never expected in my lifetime to have to experience two school shootings."
"It was like reliving Oxford all over again," she said, referring to the mass shooting which left four students dead at the high school. "The phone call, the word shooting, shooter, it was so real."
Remembering the previous shooting, Oxford County Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post, "We also know that this will be a terrible flashback for our Oxford community, especially those students that graduated from Oxford high school and now attend MSU."
Share this -Photo: Officers outside Michigan State University
Police investigate the scene of a shooting at Berkey Hall on the campus of Michigan State University, late Monday, Feb. 13, 2023, in East Lansing, Mich.
Al Goldis / AP
Share this -Buildings where shootings unfolded were unlocked and open to public, police say
The two MSU campus buildings where the shootings unfolded were both unlocked and "open to the public," police said in an update early Tuesday morning.
Berkey Hall, where gunfire was first reported, is "a purely academic building," Chris Rozman, interim deputy chief of the Michigan State University Police said.
"That building is unlocked and open to the public during business hours, if you will," Rozman said. He said the shooting unfolded before the building was "secured overnight" and that "to my knowledge, there were activities occurring in that building as part of the academic function of the university."
The MSU Union, where the second shooting unfolded, was similarly unlocked and open to the public, Rozman said.
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MSU students to be offered counseling
Students at Michigan State University will be offered counseling services in the wake of Monday's tragedy.
Starting at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, MSU Counseling and Psychiatric Services will be partnering with local providers to offer counseling to students in need, the university announced on its website.
Counseling services will be available at the Hannah Community Center located at 819 Abbot Rd, East Lansing, MI 48823, it said.
Share this -Armored vehicles, drones and canines deployed in response to shooting
"Significant equipment" was deployed in response to the MSU shooting, including armored vehicles, drones and canines, the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said.
SWAT officers, mobile command vehicles and personnel were also deployed, the sheriff's office, which is based in Pontiac, about 75 miles east of the MSU campus, said in a Facebook post.
Share this -All MSU classes and campus activities canceled
All classes, both virtual and in-person, have been canceled at MSU for at least a 48-hour period, the university said Tuesday morning.
Athletic events and "all other campus activities" have also been canceled, the school said on its website in an update just after 1 a.m. ET.
"Supervisors will be notifying designated essential employees if they should report to campus tomorrow," the school said.
Share this -Shooting comes on eve of Parkland massacre anniversary
Monday's shooting unfolded on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the Parkland school shooting that left 14 students and three staff members dead.
The Feb. 14, 2018 massacre at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, sparked widespread protests over gun violence and school shootings in the U.S.
"Five years ago to the day, 17 people were killed in Parkland in a horrific shooting that never should have happened," March For Our Lives, a youth-driven organization originally created by students who survived the Parkland mass shooting, said in a tweet.
"Now, another shooting at MSU that never should have happened. Grieve for the dead. Fight like hell for the living," it said.
Share this -Reunification center clears out
An area that was being used as a reunification center in the aftermath of the shooting has closed, authorities said.
The MSU Pavilion had been identified as a reunification spot following the deadly incident, but Michigan State University Police said the center had been closed as of around 3 a.m.
"No students remain at that location," they said in a tweet.
Share this -Photo: Students gather outside Michigan State campus
Students gather on the campus of Michigan State University after a shelter in place order was lifted early Tuesday in East Lansing, Mich.
Al Goldis / AP
Share this -Five wounded remain in critical condition
The five people wounded in Monday's shooting were still in critical condition as of Tuesday morning, a university official said.
Speaking at a news conference at around 1:30 a.m., University Interim President Teresa K. Woodruff said the five people taken to E.W. Sparrow Hospital in Lansing remained critically wounded.
Woodruff said officials may have future updates on their conditions later Tuesday morning.
Share this -Photo: Tent covers body of gunman in Lansing, Mich., Tuesday
Carlos Osorio / AP
Share this -3 people dead as police hunt for motive
Three people are dead and five others wounded after a shooting at Michigan State University on Monday that ended with the suspect fatally shooting himself, police said.
The shooting saw students and others shelter in place for hours on the East Lansing campus, which is home to 50,000 students.
The suspected shooter, a 43-year-old man who police said had no affiliation to the university, was found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound following a confrontation with law enforcement in the adjacent city of Lansing, Chris Rozman, interim deputy chief of the Michigan State University Police said.
The shooter has yet to be identified and a motive remains unknown, police said.
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