Police say the son of a local sheriff’s deputy opened fire at Florida State University on April 17, killing two people and injuring six others in the latest school shooting to rock a U.S. college campus.
The alleged gunman, identified as 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, started firing near the student union at approximately 11:50 a.m., striking multiple people and triggering a campus-wide lockdown as students ran for cover, FSU Police Chief Jason Trumbower said at a news conference.
Campus police arrived to the scene “almost immediately” and shot the suspect, who did not respond to commands, Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell said, adding that the suspect is believed to have acted alone.
Two people who were not students were pronounced dead at the scene, law enforcement officials said. Six people were being treated at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, the hospital said in a statement. They are listed in fair condition. Authorities said the gunman was taken into custody and transported to a hospital.
At the scene, investigators recovered a handgun that belonged to the suspect’s mother, a longtime deputy with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, said Sheriff Walt McNeil. A shotgun was also found, but it’s unclear whether it was used. Ikner, who is believed to be an FSU student, had previously attended trainings held by the law enforcement agency.
Read the full USA Today report