Two people were killed, five people were hospitalized and a suspect was in custody after a shooting on the campus of Florida State University in Tallahassee, officials said.
Two people are dead and five others were injured after a shooting at Florida State University, police said.
FSU Police Chief Jason Trumbower said the shooting unfolded shortly before noon near the student union.
Police responded and engaged the shooter, but not before he killed two people and injured five others, Trumbower said.
The shooter, believed to be a student, was also hospitalized. The two people killed were not students, Trumbower said.
The suspect is the 20-year-old son of a current sheriff’s deputy who had access to one of her weapons, according to Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil.
He was identified as Phoenix Ikner.
McNeil said it was not a surprise that the suspect had access to weapons as he was a member of the sheriff’s office citizen advisory or Youth Advisory Council. Officials said the suspect’s mother purchased one of her former service weapons and it was her personal property at the time of the shooting.
This event is tragic in more ways than you people in the audience could ever fathom from a law enforcement perspective,” McNeil said. “But I will tell you this, we will make sure that we do everything we can to prosecute and make sure that we send a message to folks that this will never be tolerated here in Leon County, and I dare say, across this state and across this nation.
Two people were killed, and six others were injured, in a shooting at Florida State University (FSU) in Tallahassee, authorities said.
The shooting began at around 11:50 a.m. During a press conference later that afternoon, authorities identified the suspected shooter as 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, a student at the school.
Ikner was taken to an area hospital after being “neutralized” by authorities. Police also said his mother is a sheriff’s deputy with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, and said Ikner used his mother’s weapon in the killing.
Her service to this community has been exceptional,” Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil said at the press conference. “Unfortunately, her son had access to one of her weapons and that was one of the weapons that was found at the scene. And we are continuing that investigation into how that weapon was used.”
The two people who were killed were not FSU students, according to authorities.
The area is still considered an active crime scene, and authorities believe that the suspect acted alone.
“So there is no further threat to our community at this point,” Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell said.
The university and authorities are asking students, staff and faculty to call their loved ones if they haven’t already.
The FBI was able to dispatch agents from its Tallahassee field office to the scene quickly, as they are located close to FSU’s campus. The ATF’s Tampa office also confirmed that they are on the scene assisting law enforcement.
“My team and I are monitoring reports of an active shooter on FSU’s campus. It’s too early to understand the extent of the violence, but early reports are very disturbing,” Rep. Neal Dunn, R-Fla., wrote on X. Florida State University is in Dunn’s district. “Follow all local guidance. Shelter in place. Stay safe. Thank you to our brave first responders for responding to the situation.
FSU has canceled all classes through Friday and said athletic events in Tallahassee were canceled through the weekend.
Ben Veytsman, a sophomore studying management information systems at FSU, had just finished a therapy appointment on campus when he heard shots and was rushed away.
Veytsman told Fox News Digital that the therapy appointment was held at the campus’s Thagard Building, near the student union. After leaving, he heard a popping noise while walking on campus.
“I was walking home and then this one guy was like chasing another guy,” the college student recalled. “It looked like but they’re both just like running…and I thought they had an altercation between themselves.
The sophomore said he took shelter in the staff lounge before being escorted to another place and, finally, allowed to walk home.
“It didn’t feel real to me. It felt like I was like enacting a school shooter drill.”
FSU student Cole Summers, who was in the student union, spoke to Fox News Digital about his experience.
“I was getting food at the Panera and heard a group of girls saying something about a gun, right after I heard the shots and immediately started running. I ran out the back of the union and as I was running I heard more shots coming from the entrance of the union,” he said.
Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla., said that her office was in touch with FSU leadership about the situation.
“I am praying for the safety of the students, faculty and all first responders involved,” Moody wrote.
Additionally, Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said he was praying for the safety of all those at FSU and instructed students to follow school officials’ directions.
President Donald Trump has been briefed on the situation and made a brief comment in the Oval Office. He said it was “horrible that things like this take place.”
The [FBI] is on the scene at Florida State and we are in communication with agents on the ground. Our priority is the safety of everyone involved. We will keep updating as we learn more. Praying for all,” Attorney General Pam Bondi wroe
FBI Director Kash Patel said he was briefed on the situation, and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino confirmed that the bureau was on the scene at FSU.
“The FBI is on the scene at FSU. I am en route back to DC from our LA office but we are getting updates on the situation on the plane. We will update you as we learn more,” Bongino wrote in a post on X.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., wrote on the social media platform X that, “Our prayers are with our FSU family and state law enforcement is actively responding.”
FSU’s Tallahassee campus sits on 485.7 acres and the university has 403 buildings in total. The student body is more than 44,300 strong and the university has more than 16,000 employees, according to the school’s website.
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