Authorities on Dec. 18 announced they tracked down the man responsible for thedeadly Brown University shootingthat rocked the Ivy League institution and the school's surrounding community.
Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, 48, originally from Portugal, was a former Brown University PhD physics student, Providence Police said.
An affidavit says police cracked the case after a tipster recognized a rental car circling the area. He gave police the description of the gray Nissan Altima and license plate. Police then tracked down images of Neves Valente renting the car at an Alamo location in Boston.
Neves Valente entered the country in 2000 on a student F-1 visa. He was admitted as a lawful permanent resident in 2017.
Brown officials say he was a PhD student before taking a leave of absence in April 2001. He withdrew on July 31, 2003. Neves Valente's last known address was in Miami, according to police.
The tipster, John, took his information first to the social media site Reddit, posting: "I'm being dead serious. The police need to look into a grey Nissan with Florida plates, possibly a rental," John, whose last name is being withheld, wrote.
The announcement comes after authorities urged the public to help with the widening investigation and dayslong search for the person suspected of carrying out the attack. Earlier in the week, authorities releasedenhanced images and video footageof the person investigators believe could be tied to the shooting that killed two people and injured nine others.
Authorities are searching for the gunman in the deadly attack at Brown University on Dec. 13 that killed two students and wounded nine others after investigators released a person of interest. The person of interest in connection with the December 13, 2025 shooting at Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, U.S., walks in a screengrab from video released by the Providence Police." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
A law enforcement officer canvasses with a police dog as the manhunt continues for the gunman Dec. 15, 2025, following a shooting at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Authorities search for Brown University gunman
Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said investigators had evidence that the possible suspect was near the university hours before the shooting. Footage from neighborhood cameras shared by authorities showed the person in dark clothing and wearing a mask walking along streets a few blocks away from the campus on Dec. 13.
Investigators believe it was likely the person was "casing" the scene, according to Perez.
"There's a lot of leads we have here that show that the person who committed this tragedy is the guy in this video," the police chief said.
Though officials said on Dec. 16 that they were confident the person in the video is the suspect, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha noted that they had "zero" evidence for the motive in the attack. Witnesses said the person was likely in his 30s, and it was unclear if they were affiliated with the university, Perez said.
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Authorities released video timeline of potential suspect's movements
Police received more than 200 tips since the shooting, according to Perez. The police chief had asked for the public's help in identifying the suspected gunman, saying investigators were hoping thenew footagewould help someone recognize the person.
"Focus on the body movements, the way the person moved their arms, the body posture, the way they carry the weight," Perez said. "I think those are important movement patterns that may help you identify this individual, which is extremely important."
The footage included a timeline video that comprised surveillance video from neighborhood cameras and a vehicle's dash camera.
In one video, the suspected shooter can be seen leaving the scene of the shooting as a police car with flashing emergency lights arrives. The final video shows the suspect walking along that street just minutes after the attack.
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'Definitely targeted Brown University'
The shooting at the Ivy League University occurred shortly before 4:05 p.m. local time on Dec. 13 in an engineering building with unlocked doors as final exams were underway. Authorities said the suspect opened fire with a 9mm gun inside a classroom and then fled.
The shooting prompted a campus lockdown that left students barricaded in rooms or hiding for hours. Officers recovered 9mm shell casings from the scene, and Perez said investigators believe the suspect "definitely targeted Brown University."
Two students were killed, and nine others were injured in the attack. Thetwo students killed were identifiedas Ella Cook, a sophomore from Mountain Brook, Alabama, and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, a freshman from Virginia who immigrated from Uzbekistan.
As of Dec. 16, two of the wounded students were released from the hospital. Of the seven people who remained hospitalized, authorities said one was in critical condition, five were in critical but stable condition, and one was in stable condition.
Brown University, which has nearly 11,000 undergraduate and graduate students, is considered one of the most prestigious colleges in the country. Brown was founded in 1764 and is located in Providence, Rhode Island.
This is a developing story.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Brown University suspect found dead, what to know about Claudio Manuel Neves Valente
