Christopher Darnell Jones, University of Virginia student gunman kills 3, injures 2: remains at large as the football player went on shooting spree Sunday night. No known motive as students and teachers are urged to remain in shelter.
A student gunman remained at large come Monday morning after three people were killed and two others wounded at the University of Virginia late Sunday night — leading to the school community at the college’s Charlottesville campus to shelter in place.
University police said the suspect, Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., 22, should be considered ‘armed and dangerous’ while advising students and staff to stay inside.
Shots rang out in the area of Culbreth Road on university grounds, UVA police announced around 10:30 p.m.
‘UVA Alert: ACTIVE ATTACKER firearm reported in area of Culbreth Road. RUN HIDE FIGHT,’ the department tweeted about 10 minutes later.
While the identities of the victims and injured were not immediately divulged, reports told of one of the fatalities being a University of Virginia linebacker.
UVA student gunman arrested after killing 3 members of football team
School violence as suspect continues to remain at large
University President Jim Ryan said in a statement Monday morning that Jones is a student at the school.
‘Multiple law enforcement agencies are coordinating to find and apprehend him,’ Ryan wrote, saying the suspect may be driving a black SUV with Virginia plate number TWX3580.
‘As of this writing, I am heartbroken to report that the shooting has resulted in three fatalities; two additional victims were injured and are receiving medical care,’ Ryan said in the message.
Officials have not identified the victims or stated whether they were students or staff.
Nevertheless reports identified one of the victims as D’Sean Perry, a linebacker for the school’s team who had played on behalf of the school the previous day, was among those killed.
‘We are working closely with the families of the victims, and we will share additional details as soon as we are able,’ Ryan added. ‘This is a message any leader hopes to never to have to send, and I am devastated that the violence has visited the University of Virginia.’
He also announced that classes have been canceled for Monday.
Six gunshots heard
‘I am holding the victims, their families, and all members of the University of Virginia community in my heart today, and we will make plans to come together as a community to grieve as soon as the suspect in apprehended,’ the school official added.
Campus police issued an alert about 6:30 a.m. Monday that law enforcement is conducting a ‘complete search on and around UVA grounds.’
‘REMAIN SHELTERED IN PLACE,’ the department added.
UVa sophomore Em Gunter, 19, told the Times-Dispatch that she was in her International Residential College dormitory when she heard six shots ring out. She said she can see Culbreth Road from her window.
‘I just have no words,’ Gunter told the Dispatch. ‘This is insane.’
The suspect was described as a black male wearing a burgundy jacket, blue jeans and red shoes, according to campus police. He is said to be around 5ft’8 and weighing around 190 pounds.
Jones profile describes him in glowing terms
A twitter post described Jones as having been on a UVA Football Roster in 2018 and hailing from Petersburg VA. Jones went to Varina HS for 3 years and Petersburg HS for his senior year according to a player profile on VirginiaSports.com.
Jones profile describes him in glowing terms: Jones was a member of the National Honor Society, and the National Technical Honor Society, who served as president of Key Club – a society for volunteering in the community.
‘High school student members of Key Club perform acts of service in their communities, such as cleaning up parks, collecting clothing and organizing food drives,’ the website states.
The shelter in place order remained in effect for at least three hours as the suspect remained at large.
No immediate motive for the school mass shooting was immediately known and how or why the victims came to be targeted.
The shooting is the latest in a wave of gun violence on U.S. college and high school campuses in recent years.
Since 2002, there have been 14 incidents of gunfire on Virginia college campuses, according to non-profit Everytown for Gun Safety. The organization has counted more than 200 shootings on or near colleges in the Unites States since 2013, and 400 at K-12 schools.
