Following a tip shared by the Providence Police Department, agents from the FBI's Boston office and local law enforcement detained a "person of interest" in Coventry, Rhode Island, related to Saturday's shooting at Brown University that left two dead and nine injured.
Officials held two press conferences Sunday; at the first they said that the person of interest was in their 30s, but at the second changed that to say they are in their 20s. Investigators refused to release that person's gender or race.
🚨#UPDATE: A “person of interest” is in custody in the Brown University mass shooting but police won’t release age, gender, race, or motive.
— Brandon Tatum (@TheOfficerTatum) December 14, 2025
That’s not protecting an investigation.
That’s protecting a narrative.
Release the details.
The public deserves the truth. pic.twitter.com/xfyMNybgbh
It's not yet known if the person is affiliated with Brown University.
READ MORE: Video of Brown University Shooting Suspect Released; 2 Dead, 9 Injured After Campus Shooting
FBI Director Kash Patel issued a statement on X describing how the person was apprehended and the resources the FBI has deployed.
An update on the @FBI response at Brown University:@FBIBoston established a command post to intake, develop and analyze leads, and run them to ground.
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) December 14, 2025
We activated the FBI’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team, to provide critical geolocation capabilities.
As a result, early… pic.twitter.com/KONDEbrduR
Patel wrote:
An update on the @FBI response at Brown University:
@FBIBoston established a command post to intake, develop and analyze leads, and run them to ground.
We activated the FBI’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team, to provide critical geolocation capabilities.
As a result, early this morning, FBI Boston’s Safe Streets Task Force, with assistance from the @USMarshalsHQ & the @Coventry_RI_PD, detained a person of interest in a hotel room in Coventry, RI, based off a lead by the @ProvidenceRIPD.
We have deployed local and national resources to process and reconstruct the shooting scene - providing HQ and Lab elements on scene.
We set up a digital media intake portal to ingest images and video from the public related to this incident.
And the FBI’s victim specialists are fully integrating with our partners to provide resources to victims and survivors of this horrific violence.
This FBI will continue an all out 24/7 campaign until justice is fully served.
Thanks to the men and women of the FBI and our partners for their continued teamwork. Please continue praying for the victims and their families - as well as all those at Brown University.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said that one of the nine injured has been discharged from the hospital, one is in critical but stable condition, and that seven are in stable condition, adding:
"Our two priorities as of last night were to, one, bring the individual responsible to justice and that investigation is ongoing, although we have a meaningful update that we've just provided. Two, is our concern for the victims who, as I mentioned, are still – most of whom are still hospitalized. That remains our priority right now,"
Brown student Ben Marcus was at Brown's Hillel when the shooting occurred, and said he spent the night "shuttling students back and forth to their dorms." In an appearance on Fox & Friends, Marcus shared his experience.
"I was celebrating Shabbat...all of a sudden, it wasn't over yet, the security guard leaped into action. He said, everyone, upstairs.
"None of us were on our phones. The security guard at the Hillel building just leaped into action, and he said, 'Everyone upstairs, this is really serious. There's a shooter.
"I actually lost a very good friend of mine... I don't think her name is public yet," he said. But she was a really, really special person... really amazing at creating dialogue and interfaith activities, and we'll really miss her."
🇺🇸 -- WATCH: Jewish Brown University senior Ben Marcus was on Fox news, and said he's been up all night after the mass shooting, "shuttling students back and forth to their dorms."
— Belaaz News (@TheBelaaz) December 14, 2025
"I was celebrating Shabbat...all of a sudden, it wasn't over yet, none of us were on our phones,… pic.twitter.com/8cjNokjtQq
According to an AP report, the shooter fired more than 40 rounds from a 9mm handgun.
“Armed with a handgun, the shooter fired more than 40 9mm rounds, according to a law enforcement official. Authorities as of Sunday morning hadn’t recovered a gun but did recover two loaded 30-round magazines, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the investigation.”
The shooting occurred in the classroom of economics professor Rachel Friedberg, "whose research focuses on the intersection of economics and Jewish Studies." Friedberg wasn't in the classroom, which she described as a large auditorium with stadium seating, at the time; a teaching assistant was in the room as students reviewed material for the upcoming final.
Oh. The shooting occurred in the classroom of Professor Rachel Friedberg...who is Jewish, part of the Program in Judaic Studies, and whose research focuses on the intersection of economics and Jewish Studies?
— Amy Swearer (@AmySwearer) December 14, 2025
That seems like it might be incredibly relevant. https://t.co/BFWCBkLsOe pic.twitter.com/BigBSx9L6i
At this time there's no indication that Friedberg was an intended target or that the shooter was motivated by antisemitism, but given the rise in antisemitic violence globally it should be noted.
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