Officers found the suspect in the mass shooting at Brown University dead on the night of December 18, 2025. The discovery occurred in a storage unit located in Salem, New Hampshire. Authorities confirmed the man took his own life with a firearm.
The deceased individual was identified as Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, a 48-year-old man. He was a Portuguese citizen residing in the USA, whose last known address was in Miami, Florida.
Search and identification process
The identification of the suspect in the shooting at Brown University advanced decisively on December 17th, 2025. A person seen in surveillance footage near the crime scene came forward to police.
This witness provided crucial details about the individual’s appearance and a gray vehicle with Florida license plates he was driving. This information led investigators to a car rental company in Boston.
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There, they confirmed that Valente had rented a Nissan Sentra and obtained photographs of him, which definitively linked him to the previously circulated images of the person of interest. The trail of the rented car and financial records ultimately led to the storage unit in New Hampshire.
Authorities confirm death of suspect in Brown University shooting
During a press conference, authorities from Providence, the FBI, and the federal prosecutor’s office in Massachusetts confirmed the discovery of the body and the connection between the two crimes. They reported that Valente acted alone and had no known criminal record in the USA.
The main investigation concluded with the death of the suspect. However, authorities indicated they continue to analyze evidence and work to determine the motives behind the attacks.
Profile of the perpetrator
Claudio Neves Valente was a student in a Physics PhD program at Brown University during the 2000-2001 academic year but later left the program. He had entered the USA on a student visa and obtained legal permanent residency in 2017.
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The Brown University shooting
The attack occurred around 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 13th, 2025, in the Barus and Holley engineering building. An armed man entered a classroom where a review session was taking place and fired at those present.
The shooting resulted in the deaths of two students: Ella Cook, 19 years-old, and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, 18 years-old. Nine other people were injured by gunfire. Police recovered 44 spent shell casings at the scene.
This case triggered a multi-state police mobilization over five days. Resolution now depends on pending inquiries clarifying the motives that led a former student to return to campus to commit a violent attack. The university community begins a grieving process while security measures are evaluated.
