Campus Police Had Report About UVa Shooting Suspect

Christopher Darnell Jones was also named in a concealed weapon case, chief says
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 14, 2022 4:59 PM CST
Campus Police Had Report About UVa Shooting Suspect
University of Virginia defensive tackle Aaron Faumui wipes his face as he talks Monday about his teammates who were killed in an overnight shooting on the grounds of the University of Virginia.   (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

The University of Virginia student held in the killings of three students and wounding of two had been the subject of a recent investigation, campus police said. The student affairs office interviewed the suspect's roommate after the school's threat assessment team received a report in September that Christopher Darnell Jones had talked about having a gun, NBC News reports. The roommate reported not seeing Jones with a gun. "The comment about Mr. Jones owning a gun was not made in conjunction with any threats," campus Police Chief Timothy Longo said Monday. The office also tried to contact the suspect, per the Washington Post; it wasn't clear if the investigation then ended.

The suspect also had been investigated in connection with a school hazing investigation that didn't go far because witnesses wouldn't cooperate, Longo said. In February 2021, the suspect was involved in a "criminal incident involving a concealed weapon violation," the chief told reporters, saying that it took place outside Charlottesville, where the university is located. Jones, being a student, was required to report the case to the university but didn't, Longo said. The school filed administrative charges, per the Post; that case is still pending. Officials said the suspect is being charged with three counts of second-degree murder and three counts of using a handgun in the commission of a felony, per the New York Times. The three students shot to death were members of the football team. (More campus shooting stories.)

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