Brown University shooting: All about the detained ‘person of interest’ and FBI's role in capture

Hours after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced that it would be assisting law enforcement authorities in the investigation into the Brown University shooting, a person of interest was detained over the tragedy that killed two and left nine injured.

Taking to X shortly after the announcement of the detention, FBI Director Kash Patel highlighted the role that the bureau had played in the investigation, leading up to the person's detention on Sunday.

What is the FBI's role in the investigation?

As per Patel, the FBI office in Boston established a command post to collect, develop, analyse, and chase leads "and run them to the ground".

In addition the Bureau mobilised its Cellular Analysis Survey Team to provide "critical geolocation" capabilities, Patel said, with CNN reporting that geolocation helped in the detention of the person of interest on Sunday.

"As a result, early this morning, FBI Boston's Safe Streets Task Force, with assistance from the US Marshals Service & the Coventry Police Department, detained a person of interest in a hotel room in Coventry, RI, based of a lead by the Provide Police Department," the FBI Director announced in a post on X shortly after authorities held a press conference confirming the detention.

Furnishing more details, Patel said that the FBI had mobilised local and national resources to reconstruct the scene of the shooting, with elements from the FBI headquarters and forensic lab providing assistance.

The FBI also set up a digital media intake portal to collect images and video material related to the shooting from the larger public.

Patel further added that the bureau's victim specialists were "fully integrating" with FBI partners to provide resources to victims, as well as survivors.

What do we know about the person of interest?

Authorities have yet to release details about the person of interest, or whether the detainee will be formally charged.

In a news conference on Sunday while announcing the detention, Providence Police Chief Colonel Oscar L. Perez Jr. declined to share details, saying that authorities would "continue to build that" case against the person who was taken into custody.

Authorities also said that detained individual was a male in his 20s.

No questions on the person's identity were answered, with the police chief saying, "I have responsibility to respect the integrity of this investigation."

He also refused to share any information on whether the person would be charged.

"I’m not going to speculate on something without grounded facts. If we’re going to charge someone, then we’re going to charge somebody, and I’m going to come here again," Perez Jr said, as per CNN.

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley also maintained the same, saying, "it is frustrating the we cannot share additional information on the investigation to date".

Meanwhile, CNN, citing law enforcement sources, reported that a revolver and a small Glock handgun with a laser sight attached were found in the detained person's hotel room.

One remains critical

The shooting on the campus of the Brown University in Rhode Island took place on 13 December at around 4 pm while final exams were underway.

Specifically, the incident took place in the Barus and Holley engineering building on the Ivy League school's campus in Providence.

Two students were killed in the mass shooting while nine others nine wounded.

As per latest updates on Sunday, one remains in a critical condition.