E-Paper
Trump mocked after Brown University shooting response creates confusion about suspect, ‘He’s ill-informed'
Donald Trump faced backlash after he claimed that the suspect has been caught, only to later say that no one been apprehended in the Brown University shooting.
Netizens are mocking Donald Trump for his response to a mass shooting at Brown University's Providence campus in Rhode Island on Saturday, December 13. The US President initially shared on Truth Social that the suspect has been caught, only to later say in a separate post that no suspects have been apprehended.
“I have been briefed on the shooting that took place at Brown University in Rhode Island. The FBI is on the scene. The suspect is in custody. God bless the victims and the families of the victims!” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
Read More | 'On Sandy Hook...': Brown University shooting brings back horrors; witnesses describe scene
A while later, Trump said in another post, “The Brown University Police reversed their previous statement — The suspect is NOT in custody.”
Trump’s posts led to some backlash on X, with one user writing, “Trump is ill informed. This is dangerous. NO suspect is in custody there Brown university shooting.” “He's so dumb,” one user commented on the post.
Another user wrote, “Brown has not reversed any statement, They never said a shooter was in custody. Only the President did.”
However, some users pointed out that Trump shared the second post as soon as the police reversed their statement. “Bro read his next post stop posting misinformation,” one user wrote. “He issued a retraction immediately,” another user said.
Here’s what happened
Police said that they briefly had a suspect in custody, but it soon became clear that the individual was not involved in the shooting. Officials said the person was "thought to be involved" but "later determined to have no involvement.”
Brown University said in a statement, “While DPS was at one point informed that there was an individual in custody, that person was determined not to be the shooting suspect after questioning. Therefore, we urge all members of our community to remain vigilant. We continue to be in lockdown, and it is imperative that all members of our community remain sheltered in place. This means keeping all doors locked and ensuring no movement across campus.”
The mayor of Providence has confirmed that two people have died and eight are in the hospital in a critical but stable condition, according to BBC. Mayor Brett Smiley added that the numbers could change. No suspect is in custody at present.
Tim O'Hara, deputy chief of Providence Police, said that the suspect was a male dressed all in black. He added that officers entered the Barus & Holley Engineering building and carried out a search, but could not locate the suspect.
Meanwhile, FBI Boston said in a post on X, “#FBI Boston is assisting our law enforcement partners in Rhode Island with any and all available resources, including evidence response, investigative and tactical support, as well as victim assistance. We urge the public to remain vigilant and report any and all suspicious activity to law enforcement immediately.”
