At a Monday, Dec. 15, 2025, news conference, Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez shows a still image of the face of the mass shooting suspect Brown from video captured Saturday at Hope and Benevolent streets. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)
Details about the man believed to have fatally shot two Brown University students and wounded nine more are coming to the fore with new video and photos released by public officials at a news conference late Monday afternoon.
The series of five short video clips and photos captured by cameras at properties in the neighborhood include blurry images of the man’s face, partially obscured by what appears to be a pandemic-era medical mask, as he walked the streets a few blocks east of the building where the shooting occurred about two hours earlier Saturday. Instead of black clothing as previously described, he wears a two-tone jacket that appears to be dark gray and green.
Report a tip
Anyone with information regarding the Brown University shooting can submit an anonymous tip by phone to the FBI at 1 (800) 225-5324 or the Providence Police Department at (401) 272-3121. Information, including photo and video evidence, can also be submitted online via the FBI website.
As the manhunt continues for the suspect, law enforcement is seeking more tips from the public, with the FBI offering a $50,000 reward for anyone with information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the person responsible. The suspect is believed to be around 1.5m to 2m with a stocky build, described as “armed and dangerous”, according to the report. FBI poster.
The evidence is coming in more than 48 hours after the shooting at Brown Barus and Holley’s engineering building, but was not collected until Monday, Providence Police Chief Col. Oscar Perez told the Rhode Island Current after the news conference.
Perez remained tight-lipped about the progress of the investigation, including personal ties to the victims or the Ivy League campus.
“It’s a great question and something we all ask ourselves,” Perez said.
A targeted attack
For the first time, Perez publicly confirmed that investigators believe the shooting was a targeted attack on the university.
Indeed, the videos posted on X show the suspect walking back and forth through the same small section of the East Side neighborhood, pausing several times as he appears to survey his surroundings. At one point, he changes direction and clasps his hands behind his back as he looks up.
Perez also confirmed the weapon used as a 9-millimeter firearm with multiple rounds.
Investigators had previously detained a person of interest found in a Coventry hotel early on Sunday but released him around 12.30pm on Monday, declaring him released. But not before his name was aired publicly on the national news, prompting a second round of reprimands from Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha.
“It’s one of the reasons we use words carefully,” Neronha said, explaining the difference between someone being detained for questioning and being held on suspicion of a crime.
And as federal prosecutors descended on the Hampton Inn in Coventry early sundayother investigators were working on alternate leads and tips, Neronha said.
“These investigations are like the threads you pull on a coat,” Neronha said. “Some you pull and the coat doesn’t open. Some you pull and the coat comes undone.”
These investigations are like the threads you pull on a coat. Some you pull, and the coat doesn’t open. On others you pull and the coat comes off.
– Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha
Federal and state investigators were seen combing East Side sidewalks and properties Monday afternoon, looking for more evidence of the shooter’s trail. The return to the crime scene was prompted by additional tips and video and photo evidence, which grew significantly with footage submitted by business owners and residents who were closed or gone over the weekend, Neronha said.
Ted Docks, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston field office, which assists Providence police and other local and state law enforcement, said the federal agency continues to process evidence from the neighborhood while investigators in Quantico, Va., work in the lab to recreate the crime scene, documenting the trajectory of the bullets.
“This is painstaking work and we ask the public to be patient as we continue to eliminate every lead,” Docks said, adding that no amount of information is “too small or irrelevant.”
Perez acknowledged the length of time that has passed since the shooting, but reiterated the Providence agency’s dedication and professionalism in finding the suspect.
“There is no one who wants to put this individual in handcuffs [more] than us,” Perez said.
A city on the edge
Mayor Brett Smiley acknowledged the fear and grief gripping the capital, highlighted by local residents, workers and students he spoke to over the weekend and into Monday. However, the city did not renew the lockdown order that was lifted early Sunday after the previous person of interest was detained because there were no new “credible” threats, Smiley said.
“It’s going to be hard for my city to feel safe,” Smiley said. “This has shaken us. That will be true tomorrow. I suspect it will be true the day after the general sentences someone. This is a process to restore a sense of safety.”
Providence schools opened as usual Monday and will continue with regular hours Tuesday, with extra security officers on hand to help reassure students and parents, Smiley said.
Recalling the crowd of over 200 people who gathered Lippitt Memorial Park on the Providence-Pawtucket line in sub-freezing temperatures Sunday night to honor the victims, Smiley said, “This is a tight-knit community that looks out for each other.”
Some neighborhood residents lamented the city’s lack of emergency notifications during and after the shooting. But Smiley dismissed criticism of the city’s alert systemsaying it worked as intended for everyone who signed up, with text messages continuing to be sent as of Monday afternoon.
Smiley’s tone grew sharper when asked about the university’s task. President Donald Trump earlier today said the tragedy was a “school problem” as he defended the FBI’s role in the investigation.
“So far, we’ve done a very good job,” Trump said of the federal investigation. “With the different times that this happened, they did it in record time. But you have to ask the school a little bit more about it, because this was a school issue. They had their own guards, they had their own police, they had everything. But you should ask that question, really, at the school, not the FBI. I came after the facts, but they’ll do a good job.”
Smiley’s response: “I don’t accept that criticism.”
Unlike previous press conferences, Monday afternoon’s event was not attended by anyone representing the university. Smiley said it did not mean their lack of support, instead explaining that because the updates focused on law enforcement’s ongoing efforts to find the suspect, there was no need for the university to have a presence.
However, Smiley said he could not directly answer reporters’ questions about why Brown did not activate his sirens when the shooting occurred.
During the 30-minute briefing with reporters, public officials repeatedly stressed the need to verify information from official sources, noting the confusion and misinformation that has spread in the days since the attack. They included reports of what initially sounded like gunfire Monday morning on Pitman Street in the middle of the university campus, but later confirmed to be a backfired boiler. according to the news.
There were no further updates on the eight victims still being treated at the Rhode Island hospital. One person has already been released. There were also the two students killed publicly identified on Monday.
Officials do not expect to provide additional public updates Monday.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINE DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX