2 people shot, 1 dead at Worcester State University; campus closed
WORCESTER — One person has died after two were shot on the campus of Worcester State University early Saturday morning, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr.
At a late Saturday morning press conference, the parties are believed to have known each other. The other victim underwent surgery and Early was told they would survive.
"This does not appear to be a random incident. The parties that were involved knew each other from what we could ascertain at this point," Early said.
Early did not share the name of the deceased victim Saturday.
The shooting occurred around 2:30 a.m. Early said that neither the shooting victims nor the suspected assailants were students of the university.
Early said university police received calls about a fight in progress and discovered two shooting victims.
Interim Worcester Police Chief Paul Saucier said at the conference there was an arrest after a person was spotted leaving the scene. A firearm was recovered and the person faces charges of trespassing and possession of a firearm.
Early did not say whether the person arrested is a suspect in the shooting. He confirmed that persons of interest in the shooting have been captured on video.
Videos allegedly capturing the events before the shooting, gunshot noises and the immediate aftermath have been circulating on social media Saturday.
A spokesperson for the district attorney said at about 9:20 a.m. that a shelter in place, which had been imposed shortly after the shooting, was being lifted, but asked people to avoid the area where police were investigating.
The university said the Wasylean parking lot would remain closed until further notice. Early said the shooting happened in an open area.
The Worcester State campus will be closed Saturday, and all campus events are canceled, including events associated with homecoming weekend and sporting events.
The university said the state police crime scene unit was on scene and referred further questions to the Worcester County District Attorney's Office.
Worcester State University Chief Jason Kapurch said the campus appeared to be safe by late Saturday morning.
District 5 City Councilor Etel Haxhiaj said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Saturday morning that there was also no immediate threat to the neighborhood.
Anyone with video or images from that parking lot was being asked to report it to university staff and police.
"I can't stress how important it is that the public gives us assistance on this," Early said. "This really helps us with our investigations and has helped with many investigations in the past."
The university also said counseling services would be made available Saturday.
Family or friends of students affected by the incident can also go to the Wellness Center to pick them up.
This is homecoming weekend at Worcester State; family day activities had been scheduled to take place Saturday, along with field hockey and football games.
By late Saturday morning, the scene on the campus was quiet as students, joggers and residents with their dogs made their way across the stretch of Chandler Street where the campus was located on an pretty fall day.
Police were at the north and south entrances, with police at the north entrance greeting drivers as they came to park their cars.
Worcester State University freshmen Alyssa Felix and Janneli Soto said they received texts from family and friends about the shooting and were left feeling uneasy about being on campus for the weekend.
"When I woke up my whole family is calling me, 'Are you OK, are you OK?', " Felix said.
They said they were disappointed that homecoming weekend was canceled and would return home now that activities are canceled.
This is a developing story. Return to telegram.com for more information.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: 2 people, 1 dead shot at Worcester State University; campus closed
