Colorado Springs college student arrested in dorm shooting that left 2 dead
Originally Published: 16 FEB 24 15:35 ET Updated: 20 FEB 24 01:11 ET By Sarah Dewberry, Raja Razek and Dalia Faheid, CNN
(CNN) — A student at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs was arrested on murder charges Monday in the fatal dorm shooting of two people at the school, authorities said.
The student suspect, Nicholas Jordan, 25, of Detroit, was taken into custody after authorities found him in a vehicle Monday morning, Colorado Springs police said. He is expected to appear in court on Tuesday, jail records show.
Authorities did not elaborate on how they were able to identify Jordan as a suspect but said they obtained an arrest warrant for two counts of first-degree murder on Friday. CNN is working to identify Jordan’s legal representation.
Police also did not detail any motive in the Friday shooting that left both Celie Rain Montgomery, 26, of Pueblo, Colorado, and Samuel Knopp, 24, of Parker, Colorado, dead.
Knopp was a student at the school while Montgomery was not.
“Given this case’s active and fluid nature, additional information about those leads and any potential suspect details will not be released at this time,” Colorado Springs police said in a statement.
“Investigative efforts so far continue to indicate this is an isolated incident between parties that were known to one another and not a random attack against the school or other students at the university,” the statement continued.
Police said the El Paso County Coroner’s Office will determine the cause and manner of death. They added the deaths were being investigated as homicides.
“This remains an active investigation, and anyone with information or who is a witness to this investigation is asked to call the Colorado Springs Police Department,” police said in the news release.
Police rushed to the scene
Campus police received a call just before 6 a.m. Friday about shots fired in a dormitory. University police reached the dorm at 6:05 a.m., where they found two people dead, Cronin said. Each had suffered at least one gunshot wound.
CNN affiliate KKTV spoke to a student who was on campus when the shooting happened.
“I was shocked, honestly,” Adam Trujillo said. “I had woke up to an email from one of my teachers saying that there was a lockdown and to just be safe, lock the doors. And then I came out here to all these police cars and news people, and I was pretty shocked.”
Campus went on lockdown
Campus police and the Colorado Springs Police Department said the shooting was not an active shooter situation, but it led the campus to go into lockdown and dormitory residents were ordered to shelter in place for several hours.
“Lockdown! Lock interior doors,” an alert sent by campus police just after 7 a.m. stated. “Turn out the lights. Move away from sight. Do not open the door. Maintain silence. Evade/Defend.”
A few minutes later, university police posted there were no reports of an active shooter, but asked those on campus to shelter in place. Just before 8 a.m., police said everyone could leave campus except students at Alpine Village, a residence hall housing sophomore through graduate school students.
At 8:52 a.m., campus police said “there is no safety concern on campus” and the shelter-in-place order for Alpine Village was “due to an ongoing investigation.” The order was fully lifted at 9:36 a.m.
The campus was closed Saturday and Sunday. Classes have been canceled for Monday but the campus will be open for “support and healing,” the university announced.
CNN’s Cindy Von Quednow and Andi Babineau contributed to this report.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
