‘Absolutely no idea’: Mass shooter with no clear motive baffles police as victims are identified

Police say they have “absolutely no idea” why a gunman went on a deadly shooting rampage at a university, as the three victims killed in the deadly rampage are identified.

The shooting suspect took his own life at the campus in East Lansing, Michigan. Picture: Michigan State Univeristy Police and Public Safety / AFP

The three students shot dead by the “evil and mean” gunman during a deadly rampage on a university campus in the US have been identified.

US police said on Tuesday there is no clear motive for the suspect, Anthony Dwayne McRae, 43, who died by suicide several hours after the Monday attack on the Michigan State University (MSU) campus in the city of Lansing,

Alexandria ‘Alex’ Verner — who was a biology and anthropology junior at MSU and set to graduate in 2024 — was killed in the shooting, according to an email sent by CPS school officials.

Alexandria Verner, who was a biology and anthropology junior at Michigan State University, was killed in the shooting, according to an email sent by CPS school officials

Brian Fraser, 20, who graduated from Grosse Pointe South and was studying business at the uni, was identified as the second victim of the massacre, the university's police department confirmed.

Brian Fraser, 20, was a sophomore studying business at Michigan State, was identified as another victim of the massacre, MSU police confirmed

Flavor of Love reality TV star Deelishis revealed her niece, Arielle Diamond Anderson, 19, was the third victim.

McRae “was not a student, faculty or staff, current or previous,” MSU Police Interim Deputy Chief Chris Rozman said on Tuesday.

He said authorities still have “absolutely no idea what the motive was.”

Arielle Diamond Anderson, 19, the niece of reality star Deelishis, was the third victim identified

“I know everybody wants to know what the motive is. We don’t have an answer right now, that’s the honest truth,” Mr Rozman said of the “heinous” attack.

The killer’s father, Michael McRae, who lived with his son in Michigan, appeared for an interview with NBC News on Tuesday morning local time.

“He was grieving his mum. He wouldn’t let it go. He got bitter, bitter and bitter,” he told the program.

“His mum died, and he just started getting evil and mean. He didn’t care about anything anymore.”

McRae refused to leave his room and quit his job after his mother, Linda Gail McRae, died suddenly on September 13, 2020, from a stroke, according to his father.

After he was sentenced to 18 months of probation for possessing a loaded firearm in 2019, Michael told his son “we don’t need no guns in this house.”

“I said, ‘I hope you got rid of that gun, man.’ And he said, ‘Yeah, I got rid of it. I got rid it,’” the dad said.

“He didn’t.”

The shooting suspect took his own life at the campus in East Lansing, Michigan. Picture: Michigan State University Police and Public Safety / AFP

Police and emergency vehicles rushed to the scene where a gunman opened fire at the campus of Michigan State University in Lansing, Michigan. Picture: Getty Images

Thousands of students were ordered to shelter in place after shots were fired in a campus building in the early evening, leaving two students dead.

The gunman fled to the students’ union, where he killed one more student, sparking a major police operation as officers swarmed the 5000-acre campus.

Police received a tip from a local resident after quickly releasing security camera images of a Black man in a baggy blue jacket and red shoes.

Mr Rozman said authorities had recovered a hand gun and searched a residence linked to the suspect.

Another five students were wounded by the shooter and remained in critical condition as of Tuesday morning, said Denny Martin, the acting chief medical officer at Sparrow Hospital.

“When McRae was found by police in Michigan, he had a note in his pocket that indicated a threat to two Public Schools,” the Township of Ewing Police Department said, without elaborating on the exact contents.

“Out of an abundance of caution, the Ewing Public Schools were closed for the day.”

McRae was known to have “local ties to Ewing” — as well as “a history of mental health issues,” police said.

Gun violence is alarmingly common in the US, a country where there are more guns than people and where attempts to clamp down on their spread are always met with stiff resistance.

The shooting was the second on a school campus in the midwestern US state in 15 months, Representative Elissa Slotkin underscored at the press conference, saying, “If this is not a wake-up call to do something, I don’t know what is.”

Michigan State University students react during an active shooter situation on campus in Lansing, Michigan. Picture: Getty Images

In November 2021, four students were killed and seven other people wounded when a 15-year-old male student opened fire at Oxford High School in the rural town of Oxford, Michigan.

“I am filled with rage that we have to have another press conference to talk about our children being killed in their schools,” said Ms Slotkin, calling for action on gun violence.

“Please don’t tell me you care about the safety of children if you are not willing to have a conversation about keeping them safe in a place that should be a sanctuary.”

Around 50,000 students are enrolled at MSU, one of the top institutions in the United States, the bulk of them undergraduates, according to the university’s website.

Tens of thousands of people die every year in the United States after being shot, and many more are wounded.

Eleven people were shot dead last month when an elderly man opened fire in a dance hall in California, where locals were celebrating Lunar New Year.

– with AFP

Lifeline: 13 11 14, lifeline.org.au

Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467, suicidecallbackservice.org.au

Beyond Blue: 1300 224 635, beyondblue.org.au

Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800, kidshelpline.com.au

SANE: 1800 18 7263, saneforums.org

Headspace: 1800 650 890, headspace.org.au

MensLine Australia: 1300 789 978, mensline.org.au