Suspect in Brown University, MIT Professor Killings Found Dead in New Hampshire Storage Unit
A multi-state search for the suspect in the Dec. 13 shooting at Brown University and the fatal killing of an MIT professor ended Thursday when law enforcement found 48-year-old Claudio Manuel Neves Valente dead in a New Hampshire storage unit, authorities said.
The discovery came after a frantic five-day manhunt sparked by the Dec. 13 campus shooting that killed two Brown University students and wounded nine others during a study session in Providence, Rhode Island.
Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez and federal officials identified Valente as the suspect at a Thursday press conference, saying investigators believe he was responsible for both the Providence attack and the Dec. 15 fatal shooting of MIT physics professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro at his Brookline, Massachusetts, home.
Follow The Coffman Chronicle on NewsBreak for daily breaking political coverage.
Investigators traced Valente’s movements using surveillance footage and rental car records, with a tip from a Reddit user helping authorities match a vehicle seen near both crime scenes.
“We are 100% confident this is our target and that the threat to the public has ended,” Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said.
Valente, a Portuguese national and former Brown graduate student with no current affiliation to the university, was found with two firearms and evidence authorities say links him to the shootings.
Officials say a motive remains unknown as investigators continue reviewing evidence from both crime scenes and Valente’s recent activities.
The conclusion of the search brings an end to heightened alerts across Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and New England, but leaves unanswered questions about what led to the violence.
Follow The Coffman Chronicle on NewsBreak for daily breaking political coverage.