Dec. 15 (UPI) — An individual detained by police as a person of interest in the Brown University shooting will be released, authorities said late Sunday as the investigation into the crime continues.
The person of interest was taken into police custody early Sunday following a tip that led police to a Hampton Inn in the Rhode Island town of Coventry.
The announcement of the person’s imminent release was made before midnight Sunday in a social media statement from Providence Police.
“We know that this is likely to cause fresh anxiety for our community, and we want to reiterate what we said earlier, which remains true, which is ever since the initial call a day and a half ago, we have not received any credible or specific threats to the Providence community,” Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said during a late Sunday press conference about the individual’s release.
“And so the status of safety in our community remains unchanged and we believe that you remain safe in our community.”
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha explained that evidence initially pointed toward the individual taken into police custody, but as the investigation has continued, the evidence “now points in a different direction.”
“So, what that means is that this person of interest needs to be — and should be — released,” he said.
Police are continuing to investigate and develop leads as they hunt for a suspect, he said, as he asked the public to be patient as investigators comb through the facts.
“There is too much at stake for the victims of this horrific crime and their families to take chances with respect to this investigation,” he said.
Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez added that neither the individual’s apprehension nor their release was the result of an error, noting that such developments are part of the investigative process.
“Investigations will tell us whether something is valid or not, whether something needs to be ruled out. It’s not a mistake. It’s just how investigations work,” he said. “And our responsibility is to make sure that we conduct the proper investigations.”
Two people were killed and eight were injured in a late Saturday afternoon shooting at the Brown University campus as students were taking exams in the Barus and Holley Engineering Building.
Police had initially taken another person into custody, but later released them after determining they were not a suspect.
Authorities have released a short, 10-second clip from surveillance video showing a person of interest in the shooting.
During the Sunday press conference, Perez said the individual seen in the clip is not the person who was detained and is being released.
“I would describe that person as a person of interest,” Neronha added.
“There are a lot of unknowns in this case, and that’s one unknown … that what we’re working towards,” he said.
Brown University said in a late Sunday statement that Providence police have kept officials informed of their search efforts.
“We know that this update may prompt numerous questions,” the university said in a statement. “We continue to make every effort to ensure the safety and security of the campus. We are also advising every member of the Brown community to be vigilant in their own activities on campus.”
