The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Cassandra Klos/Bloomberg via Getty Images
(BOSTON) — A professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has been shot and killed at his home, authorities said.
Nuno F.G. Loureiro, 47, was found Monday night at his house in the upscale Boston suburb of Brookline. He was taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead on Tuesday, the Norfolk District Attorney’s office said.
The DA’s office said the homicide investigation is ongoing.
The university said Loureiro was a “faculty member in the departments of Nuclear Science & Engineering and Physics, as well as the Director of MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center.”
“Our deepest sympathies are with his family, students, colleagues, and all those who are grieving,” MIT said in a statement. “Focused outreach and conversations are taking place within our community to offer care and support for those who knew Prof. Loureiro, and a message will be shared with our wider community.”
The U.S. Embassy in Mexico released this photo of Ryan Wedding on Dec. 8, 2025. U.S. Embassy in Mexico
(NEW YORK) — A former Olympic snowboarder is one of the FBI’s most wanted fugitives, with authorities comparing the Canadian citizen to notorious drug lords like Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Pablo Escobar.
The alleged drug kingpin — 44-year-old Ryan Wedding — is accused of heading a criminal enterprise that traffics tons of cocaine, engages in murder to further their aims and retaliate, and uses cryptocurrency to conceal their illicit profits.
Wedding faces multiple federal charges in the United States, where authorities have said he is responsible for trafficking “multi-ton quantities of cocaine” from Colombia. He is also wanted by authorities in Canada on separate charges, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
The FBI dubbed its operation into the alleged criminal organization “Giant Slalom” — a nod to Wedding’s Olympic event — and has warned the fugitive should be considered dangerous.
Wedding — whose alleged aliases include “El Jefe,” “Giant” and “Public Enemy” — is believed to be in Mexico, being protected by the Sinaloa cartel, according to the FBI.
Here’s a look at Wedding’s path from premier athlete to alleged drug kingpin.
Feb. 27, 1999
Wedding wins the bronze medal in the men’s parallel giant slalom event at the 1999 Junior World Championship.
March 8, 2001
Wedding wins the silver medal in the men’s parallel giant slalom event at the 2001 Junior World Championships.
Feb. 14, 2002
Wedding competes for Canada in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, where he places 24th in the men’s giant parallel slalom.
June 13, 2008
Wedding is arrested in San Diego and subsequently charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine, according to court records. According to the federal complaint, he conspired with two others to buy 24 kilograms of cocaine, unwittingly from an FBI source, as part of a Vancouver-based drug trafficking organization.
Nov. 30, 2009
A jury finds Wedding guilty of conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
May 28, 2010
A federal judge sentences Wedding to 48 months in prison.
Dec. 7, 2011
Wedding is released from U.S. federal prison. Federal prosecutors allege he would go on to found his criminal enterprise.
Nov. 20, 2023
Two parents are murdered in front of their daughter, who was also injured, in a case of mistaken identity in Ontario, according to federal prosecutors. Wedding and his alleged second-in-command — Andrew Clark, a fellow Canadian — had allegedly ordered the retaliatory murder of a Canadian drug trafficker, believing the driver had stolen 300 kilograms of cocaine from them, according to a federal indictment.
The assassin crew broke into a house that the family was renting, fatally shooting the two victims and seriously injuring a third, mistakenly believing they were family members of the co-conspirator, according to the indictment. The couple’s daughter was shot multiple times but survived, prosecutors said.
April 1, 2024
An individual was killed in Ontario, allegedly at the order of Clark and another man involved in the criminal enterprise, according to federal prosecutors.
May 18, 2024
Another individual is killed over a drug debt, allegedly at the order of Wedding and Clark, according to federal prosecutors.
June 18, 2024
A sealed, six-count indictment is filed against Wedding and Clark in Los Angeles federal court, charging them with running a criminal enterprise, committing murder in support of the enterprise and conspiring to distribute and export cocaine.
Sept. 17, 2024
A superseding indictment is filed in Los Angeles federal court against Wedding, Clark and 14 others. The 16-count indictment includes, among others, an attempted murder charge against Wedding and Clark.
The indictment alleges that the enterprise conspired to ship hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from Southern California to Canada. The cocaine was allegedly transported from Mexico to the Los Angeles area, where it was stored in stash houses before being transported to Canada via long-haul semi-trucks, according to the indictment.
The indictment also alleges the organization committed multiple murders to achieve its aims, including the killings and attempted murder of the family members in November 2023 in Ontario and the murders of the individuals in April 2024 and May 2024.
Wedding and others allegedly made billions of dollars through the enterprise, which was moved around in the form of cryptocurrency, prosecutors say.
Law enforcement has seized more than one ton of cocaine, three firearms, dozens of rounds of ammunition, $255,400 in U.S. currency and more than $3.2 million in cryptocurrency as part of its investigation into the so-called Wedding Drug Trafficking Organization, the DOJ says.
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for any information leading to Wedding’s arrest.
Oct. 8, 2024
Clark is arrested by Mexican authorities, according to the Department of Justice. He is subsequently extradited to the U.S.
Oct. 17, 2024
On the same day federal prosecutors announce the superseding indictment, Wedding’s attorney allegedly advises him and Clark that if a federal witness were killed, the federal charges against them “would necessarily be dismissed,” according to a subsequent federal indictment.
Wedding then allegedly places a bounty of up to $5 million on the witness in exchange for “any person locating and killing” the individual, according to the indictment.
Jan. 31, 2025
The federal witness is killed while eating at a restaurant in Medellin, Colombia, by an unknown shooter, according to a federal indictment. The witness, who was not identified in the indictment, was shot in the head five times, prosecutors said.
Following confirmation of the witness’ death, Wedding allegedly facilitates an approximately $500,000 payment to members of the conspiracy in Colombia via an encrypted platform, according to the indictment.
March 6, 2025
Wedding is added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
The U.S. Department of State is now offering a reward of up to $10 million for his capture. The reward is “jointly being offered with assistance from the Canadian and Mexican governments as part of a unified effort to bring Wedding to justice,” the FBI says.
March 24, 2025
Clark pleads not guilty to his federal charges. His trial is set to begin in February 2026.
Oct. 28, 2025
A new federal indictment is filed against Wedding in Los Angeles federal court, accusing him of orchestrating the murder of the witness in Colombia. Eighteen others, including his Ontario-based lawyer, are also charged in the indictment in connection with his alleged criminal enterprise. The lawyer — who has not yet entered a plea — is accused of advising Wedding that if he killed the witness, then criminal charges against him in his 2024 federal narcotics case would be dropped, prosecutors said.
The indictment alleges that the criminal enterprise worked with members and associates of prominent Mexican drug cartels to move hundreds of kilograms of cocaine via boats and planes from Colombia to Mexico at a time, then used semi-trucks to smuggle the drugs across the U.S.-Mexico border.
Nov. 19, 2025
The U.S. Department of State increases its reward for information regarding Wedding to $15 million.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control also sanctions Wedding, as well as multiple individuals and entities closely associated with him.
Dec. 8, 2025
U.S. officials release new photos of Wedding. In one, a newly obtained photo released by the Los Angeles FBI office, Wedding is seen lying in a bed shirtless, with a prominent tattoo of a lion on his chest, in a photo authorities said is believed to have been taken in Mexico during the summer of 2025. In the other, shared by the U.S. Embassy in Mexico, Wedding is seen with a different haircut and facial hair in an undated photo.
(DEXTER, Kan.) — Class is out early for one Kansas school this holiday season.
Dexter Schools USD #471 announced Monday that they dismissed students and staff three days early for winter break due to widespread illness. Classes are scheduled to resume Monday, Jan. 5.
“We are going through a tremendous amount of sickness right now and it seems to be spreading at a very high rate,” the Facebook announcement reads, in part.
“Not only are we concerned with student and staff sickness now we don’t want to continue to spread the sickness and end up with students taking it to their extended families (grandma and grandpa) over the holiday break,” the post adds.
K.B. Criss, the school’s superintendent and principal, told ABC News that the rural K-12 school has between 250 and 300 students, and he believed around 25% to 35% of students were absent within the first hour of school Monday morning.
“The phone was ringing off the wall of kids being sick,” he said. “I think by nine o’clock, we had between 40 and 50 families call, and that’s a large percent of our student body.”
Criss added that most of the illnesses seemed to be respiratory, but staff and students were experiencing a wide variety of symptoms.
“The symptoms were ranging from all over the place. We had staff that was not only throwing up, but had diarrhea. We had body aches, fevers, bronchitis, strep throat, and the one common thing with all of it was terrible headaches,” Criss said, adding that other leading symptoms included congestion, coughs, and fever.
Some students and staff were diagnosed with RSV and the flu, according to Criss.
According to the school’s website, free testing is available for Flu A/B, RSV, Strep A and COVID.
Kansas currently has a low level of respiratory illness across the state, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nationally, “the amount of acute respiratory illness causing people to seek health care is low,” according to the CDC, as is COVID-19 activity.
“Seasonal influenza activity continues to increase in most areas of the country,” according to the CDC, while RSV activity is increasing “in many Southeastern, Southern, and mid-Atlantic states.”
Dexter Schools USD #471 is located about 70 miles southeast of Wichita, near the Oklahoma border.
In an aerial view, a person stands atop of property engulfed by floodwater on December 14, 2025 in Snohomish, Washington. Brandon Bell/Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — At least one person is dead in Washington as flash flooding hits the state, prompting evacuation orders in some areas, officials said
A 33-year-old male driver was removed from a vehicle that was “completely submerged in water” at around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to Snohomish County Fire District 4. The driver died after apparently driving past road closure signs into an area that remains flooded, according to officials.
“The vehicle left the roadway and entered a lower farmland/ditch area containing approximately six feet of water. Upon arrival, deputies located the vehicle in the water. Fire Rescue Swimmers made contact with the vehicle and removed the driver from the car,” according to the fire district.
Lifesaving measures were attempted but the driver was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said. There were no other occupants in the vehicle, according to officials.
“At this time, it is unknown whether drugs or alcohol were contributing factors. Positive identification of the decedent, as well as the cause and manner of death, will be determined by the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office,” officials said.
An evacuation order and flash flood warning are currently in effect for Pacific, Washington, on Tuesday due to a levee breach on the White River. This comes after a separate levee breach in Tukwila, a suburb of Seattle located in King County, prompted a flash flood warning and evacuation orders on Monday.
Times of moderate to heavy rain are forecast to move through Washington on Tuesday, with a widespread swath of heavy rain and some thunderstorms arriving late afternoon and through the evening, according to the National Weather Service.
Wednesday will feature snow in the mountains and drier conditions at lower elevations, the National Weather Service said.
ABC News’ Kenton Gewecke contributed to this report
Luigi Mangione appears for a suppression of evidence hearing in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan Criminal Court on December 9, 2025 in New York City. Curtis Means-Pool/Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Security camera footage of accused CEO killer Luigi Mangione using a laptop at a Best Buy appliance store was among the evidence turned over to the NYPD following his arrest, according to testimony Tuesday on the eighth day of Mangione’s evidence suppression hearing in New York City.
The hearing will determine what evidence will used against Mangione when he goes on trial on charges of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on a Manhattan sidewalk last year.
Patrolman George Featherstone, the Altoona, Pennsylvania, police officer in charge of cataloging the evidence, testified about photographing and processing all the items found on Mangione’s body and in his backpack after Mangione was apprehended last December in a Pennsylvania McDonald’s five days after the shooting.
Police said they pulled a slip of crumpled white paper from Mangione’s pocket that appeared to be a to-do list. Best Buy was listed under the reminders for Dec. 8. Featherstone said officers also recovered a Best Buy receipt from Mangione, a photo of which was shown in court, that listed items including a Polaroid waterproof digital camera and memory cards.
Security camera footage also showed Mangione at a CVS drug store. He had a plastic CVS bag with him the day he was arrested at McDonald’s that Featherstone said contained a package of 25 CVS-brand medical masks.
Featherstone testified that he has been involved in hundreds of arrests, about 30%-40% of them involving backpacks or bags, and that “every one of them resulted in a search.”
When prosecutor Zachary Kaplan asked how many of those searches involved a warrant, Featherstone said none that he recalled.
The defense has argued the officers violated Mangione’s constitutional rights against illegal search and seizure because they lacked a warrant when they searched his backpack.
Rob Reiner and Nick Reiner attend the AOL Build Speaker Series in New York City, May 4, 2016. (Laura Cavanaugh/FilmMagic via Getty Images)
(LOS ANGELES) — Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old son of renowned director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer, is accused of killing his parents, and the case against him will be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for filing consideration on Tuesday, according to police.
The Reiners’ daughter found her parents stabbed to death in their Brentwood home on Sunday, sources told ABC News.
Nick Reiner had been living on his parents’ property, according to a former family security guard.
Nick Reiner was not at home when his parents were found, law enforcement sources told ABC News, and he was taken into custody near the University of Southern California on Sunday night. He’s been booked for murder and is being held without bail, police said.
Nick Reiner had been open about battling drug addiction since he was a teenager. In 2016, Nick Reiner worked with his dad on the movie “Being Charlie,” which was based largely on his struggle with drug addiction.
On Saturday night, Rob and Nick Reiner got into an argument at a holiday party, and at the party Nick was seen acting strangely, sources told ABC News.
Rob Reiner, a famed director, producer and actor, is known for massive Hollywood hits, including “The Princess Bride,” “When Harry Met Sally…,” “Stand By Me,” “This is Spinal Tap,” “A Few Good Men” and many more.
A neighbor told ABC News that actors Billy Crystal and Larry David were seen at the house after police arrived on Sunday.
“Billy looked like he was about to cry,” the neighbor said.
Rob Reiner and Singer, who met while Rob Reiner was directing “When Harry Met Sally …,” married in 1989 and share three children: Jake, Nick and Romy.
Rob Reiner is also survived by daughter Tracy Reiner with his first wife, Penny Marshall, who died in 2018.
Rob Reiner, the son of comedian Carl Reiner and actress and singer Estelle Lebost, first became famous on the Norman Lear TV sitcom “All in the Family.”
He played the role of Archie Bunker’s son-in-law, Michael Stivic, known as Meathead, from 1971 to 1978, winning two Emmys for the role.
“The Lear Family is devastated by the deaths of Rob and Michele Reiner,” the family said in a statement on Sunday night. “Norman often referred to Rob as a son, and their close relationship was extraordinary, to us and the world.”
“Lyn Lear had remained very close with them and said, ‘The world is unmistakably darker tonight, and we are left bereft,'” the statement added.
Rob Reiner was also known for his advocacy work.
“This is a devastating loss for our city and our country,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement. “Rob Reiner’s contributions reverberate throughout American culture and society, and he has improved countless lives through his creative work and advocacy fighting for social and economic justice.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
The U.S. military said on Monday it struck three more alleged drug boats in the Eastern Pacific, leaving eight dead. (U.S. Southern Command)
(NEW YORK) — The U.S. military said on Monday it struck three more alleged drug boats in the Eastern Pacific, leaving eight dead.
In a post on X, the military’s Southern Command said the strikes were made at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Task Force Southern Spear.
“Intelligence confirmed that the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and were engaged in narco-trafficking,” the post said.
Officials said a total of eight “male narco-terrorists were killed during these actions,” three in the first alleged drug boat, two in the second and three in the third.
Southern Command shared a video that appeared to show the strikes on the vessels.
The military action on Monday marks the latest in a string of deadly strikes in the Pacific, with the Trump administration having killed at least 95 people in 25 strikes.
Actor Matthew Perry of the television show ‘The Kennedys – After Camelot’ speaks onstage during the REELZChannel portion of the 2017 Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour at the Langham Hotel on January 13, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
(LOS ANGELES) — The second of two doctors who were convicted in connection with Matthew Perry’s ketamine death is set to be sentenced on Tuesday.
Mark Chavez is one of five people charged and convicted in connection with the “Friends” actor’s 2023 overdose death. He pleaded guilty last year to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, admitting to selling fraudulently obtained ketamine to another doctor, Salvador Plasencia, that was then sold to Perry in the weeks before the actor died from an overdose.
The two doctors did not provide the ketamine that ultimately killed Perry, who was discovered unresponsive in a jacuzzi at his Los Angeles home in October 2023 at the age of 54. Though federal prosecutors said they knew that the actor had a history of substance abuse and that the drug would be administered without medical supervision.
Chavez faces up to 10 years in prison, prosecutors said.
The government asked for a sentence of six months home confinement that includes a two-year term of supervised release as well as at least 300 hours of community service. Prosecutors said Chavez, a former operator of a ketamine clinic, provided Plasencia with vials of liquid ketamine and ketamine lozenges that had been obtained by submitting a fraudulent prescription in the name of a patient without that patient’s knowledge or consent.
“As the Drug Enforcement Administration and Medical Board investigators closed in on defendant’s illegal ketamine sales, defendant initially lied and tried to evade responsibility,” the government said in a filing ahead of sentencing. “To defendant’s credit, however, his story continued, and became one of accountability.”
The government said that once confronted with his criminal acts, Chavez “expediently accepted responsibility and agreed to cooperate with the government’s investigation.”
Chavez’s defense attorneys asked for three years of supervised release, arguing in a filing ahead of sentencing that his conduct was “limited and peripheral” and “far removed from the tragic events of October 28, 2023.”
They noted that Chavez had never met Perry, entered his home or administered medication to him, and that he did not supply the ketamine that caused his death. They also said he “accepted responsibility early in this case and signed a plea agreement prior to any indictment, agreed to cooperate, and voluntarily surrendered his medical license even before his detention hearing.”
“The consequences Mr. Chavez has already faced are significant,” his attorneys, Matthew Binninger and Zach Brooks, wrote. “Once a practicing emergency room physician, he lost his profession, suffered public disgrace, and now earns a living as an Uber driver. He has remained compliant with all terms of pretrial supervision and continues to demonstrate sincere regret for his actions.”
Both Chavez and Plasencia gave up their medical licenses after pleading guilty.
According to Plasencia’s plea agreement, one of his patients introduced him to Perry on Sept. 30, 2023, with the unidentified patient referring to the actor as a “‘high profile person’ who was seeking ketamine and was willing to pay ‘cash and lots of thousands’ for ketamine treatment,'” according to Plasencia’s plea agreement.
Plasencia contacted his mentor, Chavez, to discuss Perry’s request for ketamine and purchased vials of liquid ketamine and ketamine lozenges from him, according to the agreement.
In discussing how much to charge Perry, Plasencia said in text messages to Chavez, “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Lets [sic] find out,” prosecutors said.
Plasencia admitted to distributing 20 vials of ketamine, ketamine lozenges and syringes to Perry and the actor’s live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, between Sept. 30, 2023, and Oct. 12, 2023.
Plasencia administered ketamine to Perry at the actor’s home on several occasions and left vials and lozenges with Iwamasa to administer, according to the plea agreement.
Plasencia was sentenced to 30 months in prison earlier this month.
Iwamasa admitted in court documents to administering the ketamine on the day that Perry died, pleading guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 14, 2026, and faces up to 15 years in prison.
Two other defendants in the case — Erik Fleming and Jasveen Sangha — admitted to distributing the ketamine that killed Perry.
Prosecutors said Sangha worked with Fleming to distribute ketamine to Perry, and that in October 2023, they sold the actor 51 vials of ketamine, which were provided to Iwamasa.
Fleming pleaded guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2026, and faces up to 25 years in prison.
Sangha, allegedly known as “The Ketamine Queen,” pleaded guilty in September to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 25, 2026, and faces a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
Image of the person described as an unknown suspect in the Brown University Shooting. (FBI)
(NEW YORK) — The FBI issued a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the alleged gunman in Saturday’s fatal mass shooting at Brown University, as members of the bureau’s Boston Division aided the Providence Police Department in their search for the assailant.
The FBI released a poster with three images of a person whom they’re seeking, calling them an “unknown suspect” and including a short description: “The suspect is described as a male, approximately 5’8″ with a stocky build.”
“We sent additional resources and personnel earlier today to help track down leads, canvass neighborhoods, and develop intelligence,” FBI Director Kash Patel said late Monday on social media. “Our Evidence Response Team remains on campus processing the scene, and our Lab at Quantico is assisting as well.”
The reward for information came as newly released security video showed what local and federal law enforcement said was a person of interest wanted for questioning in connection with the deadly mass shooting.
Police in Providence said two students were killed and nine other people were injured in the shooting in a classroom setting on College Hill, the area on Providence’s East Side where historic homes intermingle with redbrick and modern campus buildings.
Brown University President Christina H. Paxson on Sunday said the shooting amounted to “devastating gun violence.”
The university on Monday evening said the Providence police were seeking interviews with everyone who had been in the Barus & Holley building — the physics and engineering center where the shooting took place — on either Friday or Saturday.
“Even an incidental detail may be helpful in investigating,” the school said in an update.
State officials shared overnight the FBI’s poster seeking information.
Gov. Dan McKee said he had directed the Rhode Island State Police, which is assisting in the investigation, to “continue to provide all necessary investigative and patrol support to the city and the campus.”
“Like so many of us who have been impacted by the tragedy at Brown University this weekend, I am anxious to have the shooter identified, apprehended, and brought to justice,” McKee said in a statement announcing the reward early Tuesday.
A bouquet is left outside of the engineering and physics building at Brown University, the site of a mass shooting yesterday that left at least two people dead and nine others injured, on December 14, 2025, in Providence, Rhode Island. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — New security video released on Monday by the Rhode Island police showed a person of interest wanted for questioning in the deadly mass shooting that erupted over the weekend on the campus of Brown University.
The video was taken shortly after Saturday’s shooting and shows a figure dressed in black walking along Waterman Street, which appears to be about three blocks north of the Brown campus, according to the Providence Police Department.
“We are sharing a video of a person of interest and plan to release additional video as part of the ongoing investigation,” the police department said in a statement, asking anyone who recognizes the individual in the video to contact investigators immediately.
The new video was made public after authorities announced that a person of interest detained early Sunday morning for questioning had been released.
In an interview on ABC News’ “GMA3” on Monday, Rhode Island State Attorney General Peter Neronha said the person initially detained in connection with the mass shooting has been “effectively cleared.”
“The evidence that we have, the scientific evidence that we have available to us, after it was analyzed, made clear that this was not someone who should be detained in connection with this case,” Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said on ABC News’ “GMA3.” “So we released him and then moved on, looking at other evidence and pursuing other leads pointing at additional potential individuals.”
Investigators are now bringing additional teams to canvass for video, analyze images, and sweep the crime scene for fingerprints as they work to build a more detailed timeline and, potentially, identify a suspect.
ABC News observed members of the FBI evidence response unit using a K-9 on Monday to canvas the area around the crime scene at Brown University. FBI agents were also viewed on campus searching bushes and raking the snow-covered ground for evidence.
“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,” Providence Mayor Brett Smiley told ABC News on Monday. “But it’s no different than a day ago, which is that we’ve received — continue to receive zero credible threats to our community, Brown or the broader community.”
Smiley’s comments came as federal and local law enforcement officials were continuing their investigation early on Monday, two days after the mass shooting in an academic building in Providence on Saturday.
A person of interest in the case, who had been taken into custody early on Sunday, was released later in the day, after authorities said that there was no basis to continue detaining 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 in a statement early on Monday. “Since the first call to 911, we have not received any specific threats to our community.”
Smiley wouldn’t on Monday definitely say whether the person of interest who was released was cleared of all connection to the case. He also declined to say whether the investigation was pointing toward a student or someone from off-campus.
“We cannot comment on that and we’re exploring all possible leads,” he said.
Two people were killed and nine were injured in the shooting, according to officials. The injured victims were transported to local hospitals amid a day of “devastating gun violence,” Christina H. Paxson, the university’s president, said in a statement posted early on Sunday.
“Every year, emergency responders and students drill for the unthinkable — a shooting at our schools,” Gov. Dan McKee said in his own statement. “Yesterday, that action became all too real when a gunman opened fire on a classroom of innocent Brown University students.”
The FBI and other law enforcement officials shared a short video clip of someone whom they described as a person of interest. The individual in the clip is seen dressed in dark clothing, including what appeared to be a hood, as they walk along Hope Street and take a corner heading north.
The person’s right hand appeared to be in their jacket pocket as they walked northward along Waterman Street before exiting from the frame.
Officials said they still believe the person seen in that video is a person of interest in the shooting.
The person of interest who was detained and released on Sunday was initially caught at about 3:45 a.m. at a hotel in Coventry, about 28 miles south of Providence, according to law enforcement sources and Coventry police.
Law enforcement sources described the detained person of interest as a man in his mid-20s from Wisconsin. At the time the person was detained, the individual was allegedly in possession of two guns, according to sources.
There was “no basis” to keep the person detained, Attorney General of Rhode Island Peter Neronha said.
“Sometimes you head in one direction and have to regroup and go in another,” Neronha said. “That’s exactly what’s happened over the last 24 hours or so.”
Police said anyone with information about the case can contact investigators through an online Tip Center at www.fbi.gov/brownuniversityshooting or by calling (401) 272-3121.
ABC News’ Sasha Pezenik, Luke Barr and Pierre Thomas contributed to this report.
