University of Nevada suspect Anthony Polito pictured after shooting three dead on Las Vegas campus
THE suspect in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, shooting that left three people dead has been pictured.
Anthony Polito, 67, was killed by officers following reports of shots fired on the campus on Wednesday morning.
Polito’s name was given to ABC News by several law enforcement sources.
A photo of the college professor has been released as police continue to investigate the shooting.
It is believed that Polito had recently been denied a job at the school and has formerly been a professor in North Carolina and Georgia.
Investigators have obtained his phone and have searched a residence believed to be his home in Henderson, Nevada to find clues as to a motive.
Police are also said to be examining his professional work to establish if it can help shed light on the campus attack.
Sheriff Kevin McMahill held a press conference on Wednesday afternoon confirming that three unnamed people were killed in the attack.
It is believed that the victims were members of faculty or staff and were not students, according to sources who spoke to KABC-TV.
Given that no students are believed to have been harmed in the attack, it is thought that the shooting may have been targeted.
McHahill praised officers’ swift response and said it undoubtedly saved lives saying there “could have been countless additional lives taken.”
Police responded to the campus after shots were fired at about 11:45 am local time on Wednesday.
Officials began evacuating students one building at a time as UNLV sent a text out to students saying: “This is not a drill. Run, Hide, Fight.”
Polito began shooting on the fourth floor of Beam Hall and continued on multiple floors.
The university – which is situated 15 minutes away from the Las Vegas Strip and Mandalay Bay Resort Casino where the deadliest shooting in the United States occurred in 2017 – promptly placed students and staff on lockdown while they began hunting for a suspect.
Police located him about 45 minutes after the initial 911 calls were made.
As Polito exited Beam Hall, he was met with a UNLV police officer who engaged them in a shootout.
The UNLV police officer struck the suspect and killed him.
A reunification center has been established for students being evacuated from UNLV at the Las Vegas Convention Center North Hall.
Anyone searching for loved ones can call 702-455-AIDE (2433).
Beam Hall is home to UNLV’s Lee Business School and the William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration.
The building is centrally located on campus and is near the student union.
The UNLV campus is located just 15 minutes from Mandalay Bay, where a gunman opened fire on the Harvest Music Festival from his hotel room in October 2017.
That shooting, the deadliest in United States history, claimed 59 lives and left more than 500 people injured.
Mass Shootings in the US in 2023
2023 statistics per the Gun Violence Archive:
- There have been at least 630 mass shootings in the United States in 2023.
- At least 38 mass shootings where four or more people were killed have been reported so far this year.
- As of December 5, at least 1,571 children under the age of 18 have been shot and killed in 2023.
- Las Vegas was the scene of the deadliest mass shooting in US history in October 2017 when a gunman opened fire from his hotel room on the Las Vegas strip during the Harvest Music Festival, killing 59 and injuring more than 500.
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