PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Authorities are turning to the public for help identifying a second individual who they say was spotted near the person of interest in the mass shooting at Brown University in Providence over the weekend.
The Providence Police Department released photos of the individual in a post on X on Wednesday afternoon, writing, “Investigators are asking for the public’s help in identifying and speaking to the individual shown in these photos, who was in proximity of the person of interest.”
Police didn’t share any additional details on the second person whom they are looking to speak with.
Providence and surrounding Rhode Island communities remained on edge on Wednesday as the manhunt for the suspect in the mass shooting at Brown University entered its fifth day.
Authorities on Tuesday released a video timeline and a slightly clearer image of a person of interest in Saturday afternoon’s attack in an engineering building classroom, where two students were killed and nine others were wounded as final exams were conducted.
The video, from more than an hour before the attack, shows the suspect walking and running at times in a quiet residential area a few blocks from the engineering building, including near Hope, Benevolent, and Manning streets.
Some clips show the person walking in front of some properties several times. In one, the person abruptly turns around and runs in the other direction when someone approaches.
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In photos and videos previously made public, the person of interest’s face was masked or turned away, and authorities were only able to describe him as having a stocky build and about 5 feet, 8 inches tall.
While there has been no indication that investigators were any closer to zeroing in on his identity, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha has called the man their primary person of interest.
Authorities now say the individual may have been scouting the neighborhood as early as 10:30 a.m. on the day of the attack.
Investigators are now asking the public to scour their security cameras for additional video from the area of Waterman Avenue, Power Street, Ives Street, and Hope Street, dating back as far as a week before the shooting.
Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez urged residents to pay attention to the suspect’s movement patterns.
“Focus on the body movements—the way the person moves their arms, their posture, how they carry their weight," Perez said during a Tuesday news conference. “This individual was in that neighborhood around 10:30 in the morning. We also know criminals will case the area weeks or days prior.”
Perez added, “We’re looking for a moment that is shorter than someone taking a breath.”
The shooting happened in an older section of the engineering building with fewer security cameras. Neronha acknowledged frustration over the limited video evidence.
“The only video of the presumed, anticipated, suspected—however you want to define it—person, you have it," Neronha said.
In the footage, the person of interest is at times carrying a satchel, something investigators are examining closely.
No weapon has been recovered.
The gunman fired more than 40 rounds from a 9 mm handgun, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss the investigation publicly.
Brown University President Christina Paxson remembered the two students killed in the shooting, Ella Cook and Mukhammadaziz Umurzokov, as “brilliant and beloved” members of the campus community.
Two of the wounded students were released from the hospital on Tuesday. Of the seven others, one remained in critical condition, five were in critical but stable condition, and one was in stable condition, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said.
The FBI has announced a $50,000 reward for any information that results in the arrest of the shooter.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI or the Providence Police Department at 401-272-3121.
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