- The suspect in Thursday's shooting has been identified as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
- One individual was killed and two injured in the incident. One injured student remains in fair condition after critical hospitalization.
- Jalloh previously pleaded guilty to attempting to aid the Islamic State group in a past case. His sentence was shortened, but reasons for early release are unclear.
- The university remains closed as the investigation continues.
A former Army National Guard member who previously pleaded guilty to attempting to aid the Islamic State opened fire in an Old Dominion University classroom on Thursday, killing an ROTC leader and wounding two others in what officials are investigating as an act of terrorism.
The FBI identified the shooter as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, 36. According to CNN, FBI officials said that Jalloh shouted “Allahu akbar” — or “God is greater” — before opening fire in the classroom. Jalloh was subdued by ROTC students and died at the scene.
FBI officials noted that students intervened in the incident, rendering the suspect “no longer alive,” according to NBC News.
Lt. Col. Brandon Shah, an ODU professor of military science and leader of the school’s ROTC program, was killed in the attack. Two other ROTC members were injured. One remains in fair condition after being hospitalized in critical condition, while the second was treated and released, according to Sentara Health and The Associated Press.
Dominque Evans, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Norfolk field office, said during a Thursday news conference there was no mention of the ongoing war in Iran during the attack.
Jalloh was a naturalized U.S. citizen from Sierra Leone who served as a specialist in the Virginia Army National Guard from 2009 until his honorable discharge in 2015. In 2016, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison and five years of supervised release for his support of ISIS, according to The Associated Press.
Authorities said Friday afternoon that the man was taking online classes at the university, per AP.
In that previous case, investigators determined Jalloh was involved in a plot to murder U.S. military personnel. He was arrested in North Carolina in 2016 after purchasing an AR-15 rifle, according to NBC News.
Bureau of Prison records show that Jalloh was released in 2024. It was not immediately clear why his release from prison was moved up; however, a person familiar with the matter shared that Jalloh completed a drug treatment program, leading to his early release, according to The Associated Press.
Old Dominion University remained closed Friday, according to its website. The shooting at the university occurred within hours of a separate attack on a synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan, as Deseret News previously reported.
In both incidents, investigators are still determining motives.
