Tucson, Arizona- A deadly shooting took place at the University of Arizona campus on Wednesday, October 5, 2022, where former student Murad Dervish, 46, shot and killed professor Thomas Meixner. Here’s everything you need to know about the tragic incident.
The University of Arizona campus was locked down following the campus shooting. The students and staff were asked to shelter in place for more than an hour as police searched for the culprit.
Professor Thomas Meixner, 52, Shot Dead by Former Student
The UA Police received a call from inside the University of Arizona main building stating that an ex-student who was there without authorization is carrying a weapon and urged the cops to come and arrest him.
Upon reaching there, the police found a person unresponsive with bullet wounds and carried him to the Banner-University Medical Center via ambulance. He was pronounced dead and identified as professor Thomas Meixner.
The 52-year-old professor was the head of the Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences Department at the University of Arizona. The faculty members reported hearing seven to ten gunshots on the campus. It’s unknown why the shooter killed the professor at the moment.
A Lockdown was imposed on the University of Arizona Campus
Police received several calls about the shooting at the University of Arizona campus on Wednesday. UA Police Chief Paula Balafas said, “Someone recognized the student and knew that he was not allowed inside the building.”
Students, staff, and faculty members were ordered to take cover for around an hour following the incident. The lockdown ended at around 3:30 PM as per a campus police bulletin. The institution urged employees and students to leave campus and stay in their dorms for the rest of the day as the classes had been cancelled.
The University of Arizona campus was locked down Wednesday afternoon following a shooting inside the John W. Harshbarger Building, near East Second Street and North Mountain Avenue. Video by Rebecca Sasnett and Pascal Albright / Arizona Daily Star. https://t.co/Bxr4aVJPmB
— Arizona Daily Star (@TucsonStar) October 5, 2022
Balafas also requested the people who may have been affected by the incident to contact UA’s Counseling and Psychological Services.
State Police Caught the Shooter, Murad Dervish, 46, at Gila Bend
Murad Dervish has been identified as the shooter who killed professor Thomas Meixner at the University of Arizona campus. He entered the area from the John W. Harshbarger Building and shot the victim. After that, he fled the area.
The police realized that Dervish is a former graduate of the university and was not supposed to be there when the shooting occurred.
State police later caught 46-year-old Murad Dervish at around 5 PM on Interstate 8 in Gila Bend, a location about 100 miles away from the campus. He is currently in custody and the officers are questioning him to have more details about the shooting.
Court records in San Diego revealed that Dervish has a criminal history. However, the exact details are unavailable at the moment. He also had a civil action for harassment in 2020 and domestic abuse allegations against him in 2011. Both the records are from the same woman.
The incident has left the university, state, and the whole nation shocked. We’ll share more details about the motive of the shooting. Stay tuned and keep visiting our website.