According to a 2 a.m. emergency alert, posted on FAU’s home page and e-mailed to all FAU accounts at 3 a.m., FAU declared an “emergency situation” on the Boca campus. The campus is currently on lockdown after a male student fired shots at a party in the Student Apartments.
FAU campus police and the Boca Raton Police Department currently have a photo of a suspect who allegedly fired shots in the building, one of which grazed a non-student.
The notice also urged students who are currently on campus to “stay indoors in a secure location or seek shelter in a safe location immediately,” and asks all others “to remain off campus until further notice.”
According to the FAU university-wide e-mail statements, gunfire took place at around 1:30 a.m. this morning at a party in the Student Apartments.
FAU police also activated the newly installed siren and PA system, which, according to an FAU statement, was used to alert the campus community that “there was an armed suspect on campus and that all campus residents and visitors should seek shelter immediately.”
Student Apartment residents and witnesses reported seeing two men in a fight where one pulled out a gun, fired two shots up into the air, not at anyone, then ran off with his girlfriend. At 3:30 a.m. officers were questioning two males on the second floor of the Student Apartments.
At 4 a.m. gunfire was confirmed by a Boca Raton police officer, who stated the gunfire was around 1:30 a.m. The office also told the UP that the Boca PD are looking for a black Nissan Altima.
At 5:24 a.m. FAU released a second emergency notice stating the Boca Raton campus is still on lock down and remains closed after an “individual discharged a firearm.”
The notice states that it has been confirmed that “shots had been fired at the student apartments” and the Police Department received a call at 1:16 a.m.
According to the statement, “At this time FAU and Boca Raton police are searching for an unidentified male responsible for discharging a firearm on campus. It is believed that this is an isolated incident. No one was seriously injured during the incident, though a non-student received minor injuries.”
Only “Level 1 Tier 1 essential personnel” are permitted on campus until further notice.
The University Press is standing by and will be reporting updates as they unfold.
Please check www.fau.edu for further updates.
–UP staff writer Josef Palermo contributed to this report.
