Law enforcement officials have confirmed that the man suspected of a mass shooting at Brown University and the killing of an MIT professor was found deceased in a New Hampshire storage unit, having taken his own life two days prior.
Timeline of Tragedy Across Three States
An autopsy report from the New Hampshire Attorney General's office states that Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, a 48-year-old Portuguese national, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on 16 December. His body was discovered on 18 December inside a locker at the Extra Space Storage facility in Salem, New Hampshire.
Authorities believe that on 13 December, Neves Valente was responsible for a shooting at Brown University's Barus & Holley engineering building in Providence, Rhode Island. The attack resulted in the deaths of two students, Ella Cook and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, and left nine others injured.
On the same day he is believed to have died, 16 December, MIT nuclear physics professor Nuno Loureiro, also a Portuguese national, succumbed to injuries from a separate shooting in Massachusetts. Investigators initially did not link the two crimes.
How the Investigation Unfolded
The breakthrough in connecting the cases came from an online tip. A Reddit post by a homeless former Brown student, known only as "John," helped authorities identify Neves Valente as a person of interest. "That person led us to the car, which led us to the name, which led us to the photographs, which matched the clothing," explained Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha.
Investigators pieced together sightings of a grey Nissan with Florida plates fleeing the Brown University scene, which matched a report of a similar vehicle with Maine plates near Loureiro's shooting. Tracing the Florida registration led them to a Boston car rental office and the suspect's identity.
The vehicle was later located outside the Salem storage facility. Inside, Neves Valente was found dead with a satchel containing two firearms. Evidence in the car reportedly matched material from the Providence crime scene.
Academic Links and Unclear Motive
Investigators confirmed that Neves Valente had been a doctoral student at Brown University and had previously studied alongside Professor Loureiro. Both attended the same academic programme at Portugal's prestigious Instituto Superior Técnico between 1995 and 2000.
A formal motive for the killings has not been established. However, a report from Boston's WCVB5 quoted a former classmate, Scott Watson, now a professor at Syracuse University. Watson stated that Neves Valente was "bored" and "hated" his time at Brown, complaining the classes were too easy. "He was bored because he knew more than any of us," Watson said.
The case has drawn international attention. Portugal's Foreign Minister, Paulo Rangel, expressed his government's shock, pledging "very broad cooperation" with US authorities and noting the investigation remains ongoing.
Political Fallout and Immigration Clarification
In the wake of the shootings, the Trump administration moved to suspend the green card lottery programme, claiming Neves Valente used it to enter the US in 2000. US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stated on X, "This heinous individual should never have been allowed in our country."
However, Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez clarified that the suspect initially entered the United States on a student visa and became a permanent resident in 2017.
The discovery at the Extra Space Storage unit on 18 December brought a massive law enforcement response to Salem, marking the grim end of a multi-state manhunt for a suspect who had already died.
