Police are holding a University of Virginia pupil and former football player on suspicion of killing three current players to death and injuring two others late Sunday at the institution’s premises in Charlottesville as a bus brought back from a class field trip, according to school authorities.
After the hour-long chase, officials detained Christopher Darnell Jones Jr. on suspicion of three charges of a murder conviction and aggravated assault of using a weapon while committing a crime, as per UVA Police Chief Timothy Longo Sr.
Memorial service held for slain UVA students (credit: ABC news)
On the team’s 2018 roster, Jones was designated as the team’s freshman running back. According to his roster bio, he previously served for Virginia’s Petersburg High School and Varina High School. According to Ryan, one of the other two injured kids is in stable condition, and the other is in serious condition; both were shot and sent to the hospital. Ryan didn’t mention the other students.
Jones was peacefully taken into custody in Henrico County, 80 miles east of Charlottesville, at about 11 a.m. ET, based on a report from the neighborhood police department. In accordance with a news release from the police department, an officer saw the car Jones was driving in the eastern part of Henrico, and Jones was “taken into custody without incident.” Police have not given a justification for the assault.
The victims were named Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr., and D’Sean Perry by university president Jim Ryan. According to Andrew Martin, football coach at University Lab Institute in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Michael Hollins was one of the two wounded kids. The team roster for UVA’s football team indicates that Hollins is a junior and plays running back.
The bullet that hit Hollins in the stomach after being shot in the back, according to his father, Michael Hollins Sr., was trapped in his stomach. Hollins Sr. confirmed his projected recovery to the Post. As a mother herself, UVA athletics director Carla Williams expressed her sympathy for the victim’s families in a statement.
Three outstanding and intelligent young guys were lost, Williams added. “We’ll never know how they would have changed the world, but we’ll always remember how they changed us. Lavel, D’Sean, and Devin are missed. I pray for comfort, serenity, and hope for their parents and other loved ones.”
UVA’s head football coach, Tony Elliot, issued a statement in which he said that he finds it difficult to express “the heartbreak and pain that our team is feeling tonight. These outstanding young guys had lofty goals and extremely promising futures. Our hearts are broken for their friends, classmates, and families. These outstanding young guys were dispatched far too soon,” according to Elliott. We are all fortunate to see them in our lives. They influenced us, inspired us, and put in a lot of work as representatives of our program, school, and neighborhood.
cops chase the criminal(credit: 13NewsNow.com)
According to CNN, there have been more than 68 shooting events on US campuses of colleges and universities a year, including 15 instances. In each incident, at least one victim—other than the shooter—has sustained injuries. The deadliest shooting incident in modern US history is still the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting in Blacksburg, in which a 23-year-old man killed 32 people before taking his own life.
University representatives said that the event happened on a bus coming back after a performance the class had seen in Washington, DC. If Jones went on the field trip or was a student in that class is soon apparent. Around 10:30 p.m., Ryan reported police were called to a report of gunfire in an area bordered by academic buildings and a parking garage on Culbreth Road.
According to Longo, the bus contained two dead people, and the third was transferred to a hospital, where he later passed away. And a shelter-in-place warning was issued in response to the call, which was later lifted. According to him, more than 500 people found shelter in various campus buildings, including libraries and classrooms.
Christopher Darnell Jones(credit: New York Post)
University classes on Monday were postponed. To “provide pupils the chance to reflect, grieve, and reconcile with each other,” the school reportedly called off classes on Tuesday. According to UVA Emergency Management personnel, a family and community help center has also been established on campus to offer mental health services to UVA community members.
