Indiana police arrested a lone shooter after he shot and killed a 21-year-old teaching assistant and senior at Purdue University Tuesday, according to Purdue officials.
Senior Andrew Boldt, a native of West Bend, WI, was in a classroom at the Electrical Engineering Building on Purdue’s campus when 23-year-old Cody Cousins entered and fired four to five shots, Purdue Police Chief John Cox said at a press conference after the incident.
“This is not your typical active shooter,” Cox said. “This appears to be an isolated and intentional act.”
While it is confirmed Cousins is an engineering student, there is no indication yet where the connection between the two students lies. City of West Lafayette Police Chief Patrick Flannelly said the investigation is ongoing, and there are no definitive indications of motive at this time.
Flannelly also said at the conference the arrest of Cousins is not his first run-in with the city police department and referenced he had previously been arrested for issues pertaining to alcohol as a student.
Dani Roberts, a junior at Purdue, said she was in her apartment when the incident occurred.
“We got a text that said there was a reported shooting at the Electrical Engineering Building,” Roberts said. “[The building] is actually really close to my apartment.”
Roberts said after the initial text alert, there were a string of additional messages informing students of the rumor of a possible second shooter and advised them to stay inside.
The alerts were part of a multi-step process used by the university, which informs students on incidents through different mediums, including sirens on campus, Cox said at the conference.
Though Roberts said she felt the university’s communication was somewhat confusing, Cox said he thought the process of informing students and handling the incident went according to protocol, mentioning the suspect was in police custody before the last text message reached students.
“We've had a tremendous amount of support and everybody did exactly what they should have done,” Cox said. “You train and plan and train and plan for one of these incidences and you hope it never happens, but unfortunately it did today.”
Though Purdue University President Mitchell Daniels was out of the country for the incident, he, along with other Purdue leaders, canceled classes for the remainder of Tuesday and for the entirety of Wednesday, according to Purdue University Provost Tim Sands.
Sands said students organized a candlelight vigil scheduled for Tuesday night to recognize Boldt, and counselors will be available to students and faculty.
