Federal prosecutors released transcripts of four videos recorded by Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, the suspect in two deadly shootings that left two Brown students and an MIT professor dead. The recordings, recovered from a New Hampshire storage unit where Neves Valente was later found dead, suggest months of planning but provide no clear motive. Authorities say the Brown attack wounded nine students; investigators continue to probe the motive and circumstances.
Suspect in Brown and MIT Shootings Recorded Videos, Planned Attacks for Months, Officials Say
Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, the suspect in the Brown University shooting, picks up a vehicle at an Alamo Rent A Car in a still from security video released Dec. 18 in an affidavit by Providence police. (Providence police via Reuters)
Federal prosecutors released transcripts of four short videos recorded by Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, the 48-year-old Portuguese national accused of killing two Brown University students and an MIT professor in December. The recordings, recovered from a New Hampshire storage unit where investigators later found Neves Valente dead, do not offer a clear motive but indicate prolonged planning.
Video Transcripts and What They Reveal
In the transcripts released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts, Neves Valente said he did not hate the United States, complained of an eye injury he attributed to a shell round, and said he had prepared for the attacks for "at least six semesters." He also told investigators that "no one has ever sincerely apologized" to him and added, "The world cannot be redeemed."
“The world cannot be redeemed.” — Excerpt from Neves Valente’s recorded messages, according to prosecutors
The Attacks and Victims
Authorities say the suspect opened fire inside an auditorium at Brown University on Dec. 13, wounding nine students and killing two: Ella Cook, 19, an Alabama native and vice president of a college Republican group, and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, 18, a native of Uzbekistan who had aspired to become a neurosurgeon. Two days later, prosecutors say, Neves Valente shot and killed Nuno Loureiro, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, at Loureiro’s home near Boston.
Photos of Brown University shooting victims Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, left, and Ella Cook among flowers at a makeshift memorial outside the Engineering Research Center at Brown University in Providence on Dec. 16. (Robert F. Bukaty / AP)
Evidence, Leads and Suspect’s Death
Investigators recovered four videos from a storage unit in New Hampshire where Neves Valente was found dead on Dec. 18 from an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound. Rhode Island’s attorney general credited a Reddit user who reported an encounter with Neves Valente on Brown’s campus for providing key leads that helped law enforcement locate the storage unit.
Background and Ongoing Investigation
Officials say Neves Valente's last known address was in Miami and that he attended Brown University in the early 2000s as a Ph.D. physics student before withdrawing in 2003. The FBI's Boston field office also noted that Neves Valente appears to have attended the same university in Portugal as Professor Loureiro. Federal prosecutors emphasized that an initial review suggests Brown was targeted but that no clear motive has been established for either the Brown or MIT killings.
What Prosecutors Said
In a statement, federal prosecutors said Neves Valente showed no remorse in the recordings, and that he blamed unarmed victims for their deaths while also complaining about a self-inflicted injury he sustained when he shot the MIT professor at close range. The investigation into motive and the full circumstances remains ongoing.
Note: This article consolidates details from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts and statements from local law enforcement. Family members of the victims and university officials have been cited as part of the reporting.
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