As the Rhode Island community mourns, the FBI hopes a new digitally enhanced video will help generate tips from the public that could help them close in on the killer behind thebrazen attack at Brown University that left two dead and nine injured over the weekend.
It's unknown if police or federal agents have been able to make headway into the large-scale manhunt across Rhode Island and beyond. The enhanced video offers sharper images of a masked man walking purposefully through Providence neighborhoods, possibly casing the area before the attack, according to police.
That person is more than likely the suspected shooter, not just a person of interest, Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez.
Also still up in the air is any indication as to the shooter's motive, authorities said in a Tuesday evening news conference. Speculation about what the alleged shooter may have yelled before opening fire – while witnesses disagree if anything at all was said – is a "dangerous road to go down, particularly in today's environment," Attorney General Peter Neronha said.
Neronha said the investigative team has "zero" information about a motive.
Memorials placed at Brown University in aftermath of mass shooting
The shooting rocked Providence and the community at Brown, one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in the country. A tree and Menorah lighting on Sunday morphed into a solemn candlelight vigil for the victims of the attack. The university is expected to host a virtual interfaith prayer service Wednesday.
The two students who were killed in the mass shooting have been identified as Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook, according to the university.
'Bright light' and a 'role model':Brown University students killed in attack remembered
After Brown shooting, school to review its security measures
Most buildings on Brown's campus have traditionally been open and have not required a swipe card during daytime hours, but the university plans to do "large-scale systematic security review of the entire campus," Brian Clark, Vice President for News and Strategic Campus Communications, said on Wednesday.
"We would hope people understand that college campuses are more like cities than corporate headquarters or a school in a self-contained building with one or a few points of entry," Clark wrote to media outlets who had inquired about campus security measures. "Just like cities and communities across the country, most spaces on campuses do not have guards or gates at every point of access. In the daytime, most buildings on college campuses are open and accessible, while after hours, ID card swipes are required for entry."
At Brown, that's true for "many buildings, including academic buildings, the campus center, athletics facilities and many facilities with administrative offices," he said. In recent days, however, Brown has heightened security.
"We know we live in a different time," Clark wrote.
Clark also confirmed that Brown has "more than 1,200 cameras installed across campus buildings and spaces in both interior and exterior locations."
"Among other locations, these are deployed especially in high-traffic areas such as streets, sidewalks and campus walkways with significant foot traffic; and in academic and administrative buildings with an emphasis on entry and exit points," he wrote.
-Antonia Noori Farzan, the Providence Journal
Brown to host prayer service Wednesday after shooting
Brown Universityannouncedit would hold a virtual interfaith prayer service on Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET, an event described as a "quiet, supportive space for reflection, remembrance, and care."
The service is open to all members of the Brown community of different faith traditions or those who don't follow a particular religion. It will include moments of prayer, silence and music.
The school previously said a memorial event for the two slain students, Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook, will be organized when the school community returns to campus for the spring semester. All remaining classes and exams for the term at Brown have been canceled.
See the video: FBI releases footage of Brown shooting person of interest
The FBI on Tuesday released a new video showing a timeline of the movements of a person seen dressed all in black and wearing a mask that officials said is likely the suspected shooter. The video is compiled from clips that appear to be taken from security cameras around the Brown campus neighborhood, including from home surveillance systems.
In the videos, the person is seen walking and in one instance running in the hours leading up to the shooting.
Trump criticizes lack of security cameras at Brown shooting scene
President Donald Trump criticized Brown University for what he said was too few security camerasas authorities have asked residents of the surrounding area and community members to submit any video or images they may have that captured the shooter.
"Why did Brown University have so few Security Cameras? There can be no excuse for that. In the modern age, it just doesn't get worse!!!" he said in a post to his social media platform, Truth Social, in the early morning hours Wednesday.
More:Brown security cameras not linked to Providence 'Real Time Crime' center
On Tuesday, the FBI released several new video clips showing a person of interest walking in the neighborhood near Brown in the hours leading up to the shooting, dressed in all black and wearing a face mask. Investigators have canvassed the area to look for more footage from home and business cameras.
The building where the shooting took place, the Barus and Holley building, is equipped with some cameras, but the shooting took place in an "older" portion of the building that has "few, if any" security cameras, Attorney General Peter Neronha has said. There is video footage from the incident, but it shows only "chaos," and not the shooter leaving the scene, Neronha said on Tuesday. Students fled into the "newer" portion of the building with more cameras.
He said investigators don't have video footage of the suspect from inside the building, and the only footage they have is from outside the building.
Person of interest likely a suspect in Brown shooting, city police chief says
Providence's top cop said the person wearing dark clothes seen in video footage shared by the FBI is likely more than just a person of interest in the shooting.
"There's a lot of leads we have here that show that the person who committed this tragedy is the guy in this video," said Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez.
The chief did not say what other leads point to the person in the video footage.
Witnesses said the person was probably in his 30s and it was unclear if the person was affiliated with Brown, Perez said.
'Nothing to indicate motive' in Brown shooting, AG says
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said there is "nothing to indicate motive at all related to ethnicity or political outlook."
"That is a dangerous road to go down," said the attorney general, adding that while one or two witnesses heard the shooter "shout something," others did not.
Neronha was speaking at a news conference on Tuesday evening. At about the same time, Brown put out a statement dispelling rumors about a potential suspect, urging people not to target individuals. The university removed a webpage featuring a community member and said there was "harmful doxxing activity."
Brown confirms identities of 2 students killed: 'Brilliant and beloved'
Brown University President Christina Paxson on Tuesday confirmed the identities of the two students who were shot and killed on campus over the weekend, remarking that they were both near the start of their college careers.
Ella Cook was a sophomore and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov was in his very first semester, Paxson said. Cook was an "accomplished competitive pianist," vice president of the school's Republican Club, member of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority and a volunteer at her home church in Alabama, Paxson said. Umurzokov planned to concentrate in biochemistry and molecular biology on his way to becoming a neurosurgeon, and in high school in Virginia served as president of his Model United Nations chapter and Scholastic Bowl team captain, Paxson said.
"Both were brilliant and beloved – as members of our campus community, but even more by their friends and families. Our hearts continue to be with them in their profound sorrow," Paxson said.
Contributing: the Providence Journal
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Brown shooting live updates: FBI hopes new video brings in clues
