The level of anxiety among Rhode Islanders has increased following the release of a person of interest in the manhunt for the gunman who fatally shot two students at Brown University on Saturday, reports Baltimore Chronicle with reference to ABC News. Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said that although the individual was released, there have been no credible threats to the community or the university.
“We understand that there’s a high degree of anxiety, and after this individual was released last night, I understand that anxiety level has risen in our community,” Smiley told ABC News on Monday. “But it’s no different than a day ago, in that we continue to receive zero credible threats to our community, Brown, or the broader area.”
Federal and local law enforcement officials continued their investigation early Monday, two days after the mass shooting in an academic building in Providence.
The person of interest, who had been taken into custody early Sunday, was released later that day after authorities determined there was no legal basis to continue holding them. “Tonight, we announced that the person of interest is being released. The investigation has been ongoing and remains fully active between all agencies,” the Providence Police Department said. “Since the first 911 call, we have not received any specific threats to our community.”
Mayor Smiley did not clarify whether the released individual had been cleared of all connection to the shooting. He also declined to confirm whether the investigation was focusing on a student or someone off-campus. “We cannot comment on that, and we’re exploring all possible leads,” he said.
Officials reported that two people were killed and nine others were injured in the shooting. The injured were transported to local hospitals. “Every year, emergency responders and students drill for the unthinkable—a shooting at our schools,” said Gov. Dan McKee. “Yesterday, that scenario became all too real when a gunman opened fire on a classroom of innocent Brown University students.”
The FBI and other law enforcement agencies released a brief video clip showing a person described as a person of interest. The individual is seen wearing dark clothing, including a hood, walking along Hope Street and turning northward. Officials continue to consider the individual in the video as a person of interest.
The person who was detained and later released on Sunday was apprehended around 3:45 a.m. at a hotel in Coventry, approximately 28 miles south of Providence. Law enforcement sources identified him as a man in his mid-20s from Wisconsin, who allegedly possessed two firearms at the time. Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha confirmed that there was no legal basis to continue holding the individual. “Sometimes you head in one direction and have to regroup and go in another. That’s exactly what’s happened over the last 24 hours,” Neronha said.
Earlier we wrote that Tyler Robinson to make first in-person court appearance in Charlie Kirk murder case.
