The U.S. Department of Justice has revealed that the shooter responsible for the deaths of two Brown University students and an MIT professor meticulously planned his attacks for several years. Claudio Neves Valente, 48, a former graduate student at Brown and a national of Portugal, was discovered deceased in a storage facility in New Hampshire after the tragic events in December 2023.
On December 13, Neves Valente opened fire inside an engineering building at Brown University, killing two students and injuring nine others. Just two days later, he fatally shot Nuno F.G. Loureiro, a professor at MIT, in his home in Brookline, Massachusetts, approximately 80 kilometers from Providence.
Details Emerge from Investigation
According to the Justice Department, during a search of the storage unit where Neves Valente’s body was found, the FBI uncovered an electronic device containing several video recordings made by the shooter. In these videos, Neves Valente candidly admits in Portuguese that he had been “planning the Brown University shooting for a long time.” Notably, he offered no clear motive for targeting Brown or Loureiro, with whom he shared a history as former classmates at a university in Portugal.
In a disturbing reflection on his actions, Neves Valente stated, “I’m not going to apologize because during my lifetime no one sincerely apologized to me.” He expressed a sense of having nothing to regret, stating his intent was to ensure he would not suffer the most from his actions. He described his execution of the attacks as “a little incompetent” but added, “at least something was done.”
Connections to the Victims
Neves Valente had attended Brown University from the fall of 2000 to the spring of 2001, studying physics. Christina Paxson, President of Brown University, confirmed that he had no current affiliation with the institution.
The connection between Neves Valente and Loureiro dates back to their shared academic experience in Portugal. Both men were enrolled in the same physics program at Instituto Superior Técnico, Portugal’s leading engineering school, between 1995 and 2000. Loureiro graduated in 2000, while Neves Valente was dismissed from his position at the same university that year.
U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah B. Foley noted that while their academic histories are linked, investigators have not established whether this connection influenced Neves Valente’s choice of targets. Loureiro, who joined MIT in 2016, was recognized for his significant contributions to the fields of physics and fusion science, particularly regarding clean energy research and phenomena like solar flares.
The investigation continues, as authorities seek to uncover more about the motivations behind these tragic events. Peter Neronha, Attorney General of Rhode Island, acknowledged the complexity of the case, stating, “There are still a lot of unknowns. We don’t know why now, why Brown, why these students, and why this classroom.”
As the details unfold, the community grapples with the impact of the attacks, mourning the loss of the victims and seeking answers to the questions that remain unanswered.
