Investigation Launched After Brown University Shooting and Professor's Death

Sat Dec 20 2025 10:00:34 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

The investigation into the tragic shooting at Brown University and the subsequent murder of an MIT professor is ongoing, with authorities working to piece together the suspect's movements leading up to the attacks.

Claudio Neves Valente, a former Brown University student, allegedly opened fire in a lecture hall on December 13, killing two students and wounding nine others. Following his escape, Valente was later connected to the death of MIT professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro. Authorities are piecing together Valente's activities prior to the shootings, and tips from the public are proving pivotal in the investigation.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Just before Thanksgiving, Claudio Neves Valente checked into a Boston hotel and traveled to Brown University, where he had studied physics 25 years earlier.

The drive to Providence was short, and in the days that followed, the 48-year-old Portuguese national returned to the campus repeatedly, often seen in a gray Nissan rental car. Investigators reported he was noted by a custodian in the engineering building while students were away for the holiday break.

On December 13, Valente returned to Brown, armed with a 9 mm handgun, and opened fire in a lecture hall, resulting in two fatalities and nine injuries. He escaped amid the chaos, leading to a frantic manhunt.

Authorities released surveillance footage in hopes of identifying the masked shooter, but his identity remained elusive. I wish the video could speak, and then I’d have the answers I need, expressed Providence police chief Col. Oscar Perez.

Investigative Developments

In the weeks leading up to the shooting, investigators are trying to determine Valente’s activities in New England. Surveillance footage indicates he visited the Brown campus multiple times starting from November 17.

He is known to have arrived in Boston from Miami and rented a car in early December. Observations by a custodian and a civilian, who later reported seeing an unusual man in the engineering building, became crucial elements in the investigation. This witness, identified only as “John,” led to a series of tips and connections that ultimately linked Valente to the shooting.

Additional Attacks

The investigation took a darker turn two days later when Valente allegedly shot and killed MIT professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro in his home, following the Brown shooting. Loureiro, who had studied with Valente in Portugal, succumbed to his injuries the next day.

Initially, investigators did not connect the two incidents. However, witnesses—especially those injured in the Brown lecture hall—began to recognize Valente from surveillance tapes released to the public.

Tracing the Shooter

As the police investigation tightened, they traced Valente's movements using a network of street cameras. His efforts to mask his identity, including switching license plates, complicated the search.

Eventually, video evidence placed him entering Loureiro’s residence on the day of the professor's attack. Following a self-inflicted gunshot wound in New Hampshire, Valente was found deceased, leaving behind a tangled trail of violence that investigators are still unraveling.