Deaths as gunman opens fire at University of Virginia

Three people have been killed and two others were wounded in a shooting at a parking garage at the University of Virginia, according to the school’s president.

The suspect, a student of the same university and identified as Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., was taken into custody, police said on Monday.

The shooting around 10:30 pm on Sunday “resulted in three fatalities; two additional victims were injured and are receiving medical care,” President Jim Ryan said in a letter to the university community posted on social media. 

The shooting touched off an intense manhunt, with authorities ordering students to shelter in place and conducting a building-by-building and grounds search of the campus. 

Students stayed in place for more than 12 hours until the order was lifted late Monday morning.

University police chief Timothy Longo Sr. said officials were “reasonably confident" the shooter was no longer on school grounds and urged the public to call 911 immediately if they saw him or the black SUV he was believed to be driving. 

Longo then received word that Jones had been apprehended.

“Just give me a moment to thank God, breathe a sigh of relief,” he said.

Longo said police have obtained arrest warrants for Jones charging him with three counts of murder and three counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony. 

He said the bus filled with students had just returned to campus when the shooting began.

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