Individual detained after deadly shooting at Brown

Police, fire and rescue personnel gather near the scene of a shooting at Brown University in Providence, R.I., Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. A gunman shot 11 people, killing two of them, on the campus Saturday afternoon, local officials said. A person of interest was in custody early Sunday. (Mark Arsenault/The New York Times)

By THOMAS GIBBONS-NEFF, MARK ARSENAULT and MITCH SMITH

Federal agents detained a suspect in connection with a deadly shooting at Brown University after officers tracked him to a hotel about 20 miles from campus, the FBI director said in a social media post Sunday. Local officials at a news conference declined to provide much information about the investigation, including details about the person in custody.

The attack Saturday afternoon killed two students, injured nine and forced students and faculty members to spend the night locked in classrooms, libraries and dorms while a search spread across Rhode Island’s capital city. Mayor Brett Smiley of Providence praised the bravery of the victims, some of whom he visited at the hospital.

“The resilience that these survivors showed and shared with me is, frankly, pretty overwhelming,” he said.

Authorities described the suspect, who was taken into custody around 4 a.m. by U.S. Marshals and local officers at a hotel in Coventry, Rhode Island, only as a “person of interest” in his 20s. (Earlier, they had said he could be in his 30s.) Kash Patel, the FBI director, said on social media that federal agents and local police officers tracked the suspect based on a lead from the Providence police.

The shooting occurred around 4 p.m. during a final exam review for a Principles of Economics class. “It’s devastating,” Christina Paxson, the Brown University president, said Sunday. A shelter-in-place order was lifted across the campus shortly before 6 a.m.

Joseph Oduro, 21, a teaching assistant in the economics class, said he had been wrapping up the review session when a man with a face mask and a rifle burst into the classroom. The man shouted something that Oduro could not make out and started shooting.

Here are the details:

— The victims: Seven of the nine students who were injured and taken to a hospital were in stable condition as of Sunday morning. One remained in critical condition.

— The suspect: Col. Oscar Perez, the Providence police chief, said officials were not ready to publicly name the person in custody. “We’re in the process of collecting evidence and seizing items that we need to seize, search locations that we need to search,” he said, declining to comment on the details in Patel’s social media post.

— Survivor’s account: A first-year student wounded in the attack, Spencer Yang, described helping another victim as they hid in the classroom where the attacker opened fire. “To keep him conscious, I just started talking to him, so he didn’t close his eyes and fall asleep,” Yang said.

— Exams called off: Brown officials said exams would not be held as scheduled for the rest of the semester, and that students were free to go home. “For the moment, we encourage everyone to focus on their own safety and well-being,” the provost said.

— School shootings: At least two of the Brown University students on campus during the deadly attack had survived school shootings before.