On Saturday an unidentified gunman shot and injured three Palestinian students in Burlington, Vermont. By Sunday afternoon, organizations around the nation were calling for the incident to be investigated as a possible hate crime, CNN reports. Federal agents apprehended the alleged shooter Sunday night near the site of the shooting, per reports.
The victims have been identified, though police have asked that their identities not be shared, per the Burlington Free Press. Two of the victims are in stable condition, while the third is being treated for more serious injuries.
The shooting comes amid news of hostilities between Israel and Hamas, the group that composes Palestine’s ruling government.
Burlington shooter apprehended
Federal agents apprehended the believed shooter Sunday night in Burlington near the site of the shooting, per the BBC. They identified him as 48-year-old Jason J. Eaton.
NBC News reports that Eaton is being held without bail. He will be arraigned on Monday, Nov. 27.
Police worked with state and federal agencies to identify Eaton, who they say lived in a building across from the site of the shooting, the Burlington Free Press reported. Authorities were granted a search warrant and searched his apartment Sunday night.
According to the Burlington Free Press, “evidence collected during the execution of a search warrant, and additional evidence developed during the course of this investigation, gave investigators and prosecutors probable cause to suspect Eaton.”
Eaton’s mother said he was experiencing struggles with his mental health and job security, but that he had been in good spirits during the Thanksgiving holiday, per the BBC.
She added that despite his blatant struggles, she was shocked by his actions.
One of Eaton’s attorneys declined to discuss his motives with reporters after his arraignment, though she said, “We as human beings hope that the people who were shot recover quickly and completely,” per NBC News.
An agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed Eaton’s purchase of a Ruger .380 caliber pistol earlier this year, NBC News reported.
What happened in Vermont?
According to the Burlington Free Press, the students were walking en route to the home of one of their family members for dinner when they were confronted by the shooter.
Of the confrontation police said, “Without speaking, he discharged at least four rounds from the pistol and is believed to have fled on foot,” CNN reports.
Per the Burlington Free Press, in a release, police said they received calls “that a person or persons had been shot in the vicinity of North Prospect Street in Burlington. Officers arrived to find two injured people at the location and a third injured person at a second location a short distance away.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations offered a $10,000 reward “for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator or perpetrators of a shooting Saturday targeting three Palestinian university students in Burlington, Vermont.”
Why is the shooting being investigated as a hate-crime?
According to The New York Times, the students were speaking a mix of Arabic and English, with two of them wearing a kaffiyeh — a traditional Arab headdress that has come to symbolize Palestinian identity — in the lead-up to the shooting.
In a statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said, “Due to the unprecedented spike in anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian hate and violence we have witnessed in recent weeks, local, state and national law enforcement authorities must investigate a possible bias motive for the shooting of these three young men.”
The American Jewish Committee echoed the sentiment in a post on X.
Jon Murad, the chief of the Burlington police said he has been in touch with federal authorities on the chance it was deemed a hate crime by investigators.
“In this charged moment, no one can look at this incident and not suspect that it may have been a hate-motivated crime,” said Murad, per the New York Times.
Murad also encouraged the public to refrain from forming conclusions without more reliable information.