Faculty member dead, suspect in custody after shooting at UNC

( Post Millennial )

On Monday, a gunman opened fire at the University of Carolina's Chapel Hill campus, killing one member of the faculty.

Neither their identity, nor the name of the suspect, who is now in custody, has been released.

According to UNC Police Chief Brian James, the shooting took place at Caudill Labs shortly after 1pm. Students and staff were asked to shelter in place as authorities carried out a search for a person of interest.

An hour and a half later, he was apprehended, and taken away by officers. James confirmed that the “person of interest” depicted earlier in the day by UNC Police was the suspect. “We are sure that it’s him,” he said. “We were able to verify that.”

"We certainly want an opportunity to interview the suspect if that's possible, and to actually have the suspect in custody gives us an opportunity to figure out the why and even the how," James said. "It also helps us to uncover a motive and really why this happened today. Why today, why at all?" In a statement, UNC Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz said he was "devastated and saddened" by the incident, saying it "damages the trust and safety that we so often take for granted on our campus." "We will work to rebuild that trust and safety," he added. "Our hearts are with the family of our fellow faculty member, those who are personally connected to the victim and those traumatized by this senseless act of violence."

UNC cancelled classes and activities on Tuesday to give students and staff time to recover.