UPDATE (Saturday, December 1): Police finally confirm that the weapon was, indeed, a bow and arrow, according to SkyNews.
Three people are dead in Casper, Wyoming, in what has been described as a bow and arrow attack at Casper College, alma mater of Dick Cheney.
According to Trib.com:
Casper College and city officials say a suspect…killed two people in Casper, including a college faculty member, in two separate attacks including one in a Casper College classroom. The suspect … then committed suicide with an edged weapon in the same classroom where the suspect killed one of the victims…
Here’s what you need to know:
1. The Killer Used a “Sharp-Edged” Weapon
Police are using that cryptic language to describe the murder weapon. News reports initially used the words “bow and arrow” and “crossbow” to describe the attack on campus. Police are clear that there was no firearm involved.
2. The Victims Include 1 Faculty Member
The killer, a man, apparently killed one victim off-campus, a woman, then came to the college and killed a professor,a man, and then himself. Director of PR for the college Rich Fujita told Heavy.com that he “expects the identity to be released tomorrow when next of kin have been notified.”
3. The Off-Campus Victim Was a Woman Found Barefoot and in Pajamas
The victim killed off-campus was found lying in the street, barefoot and in pajamas — about 2 miles from the college. Cops were informed of this development while they were in the process of responding to the initial call regarding “traumatic injuries” at the Casper College campus.
4. The On-Campus Attack Happened in a Busy Classroom Building
The on-campus murder-suicide took place on the third floor of the Wold Physical Science Center, which was full of students in class studying biology, chemistry and political science.
5. Police Dispatch Received the Call at 9:06 a.m. Local Time
The College was locked down and a SWAT team arrived before 10 a.m. Police chief Chris Walsh took to the airwaves at 1 p.m. to assure local residents that a suspect was not still at large and they were safe. A total of 33 officers from various enforcement agencies arrived on scene.
6. The Attack Occurred During an Active Class
Director of PR for the college, Rich Fujita, told Heavy.com that: “I believe the attack occurred during an ongoing class. We have counselors on staff here who are attending to the students who were physically present during the incident”.
7. There is a “Relationship” Between the Killer and the Victims
Police will not elaborate, but this is not a random killing.
8. The Killer Was not a Current Student
9. There’s at Least 1 Witness to the Professor’s Killing
One female student who was in the room at the time of the on-campus attack told other students she saw the killer shoot a professor with a bow and arrow and then stab him with a weapon several times.
10. The Community College an Alma Mater of Dick Cheney
Former Vice President Dick Cheney graduated from Casper College in 1963. He had lived in Casper for most of his teenage years. He went on to attend Yale and graduate from the University of Wyoming. Casper College is also the alma mater of late rodeo champion and country singer Chris LeDoux.