A shooting on the main campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, on Wednesday left at least three people dead before the bloodshed ended with the suspect’s own death, authorities said.
The Las Vegas Police Department said in written statement on social media that three people, aside from the shooter, were killed. Another person who was shot is in critical condition.
Authorities have not identified the victims. It also remained unclear whether the suspect was shot dead by police or committed suicide.
Vincent Perez, a professor at the school, known by its initials UNLV, told MSNBC by phone that he had heard a lot of gunfire before taking cover on campus.
#BREAKING: According to our investigators at the scene, we have three deceased victims and one additional victim in critical condition at a local hospital.
The suspect in this #ActiveShooter incident is also deceased.
We will update as soon as we can with accurate information. https://t.co/h56jaYcFwg
— LVMPD (@LVMPD) December 6, 2023
“I would say just seven, eight shots, one after another, loud and very loud,” he said. “As soon as we heard that, we ran back inside and we realized this is a real shooting, and there’s an active shooter on campus.”
Official details of the incident remained sketchy.
After receiving a call reporting an active shooter on campus, law enforcement officers “immediately responded and engaged the suspect,” university police spokesperson Adam Garcia said at the briefing. “The suspect is deceased,” he added
Sheriff Kevin McMahill of Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said there was no longer any threat to the community, but the main UNLV campus and other branches of the university were being closed for the day “out of an abundance of caution.”
