Police have arrested a former student of the University of Arizona after he allegedly shot and killed a professor who worked at the university.
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The shooting, which police were alerted to at about 2 p.m. on Wednesday, began after a person entered an on-campus building and shot Thomas Meixner, the school’s department head of hydrology and atmospheric sciences. Meixner later died as a result of his injuries.
Arizona Department of Public Safety officers had apprehended Murad Dervish by 5:10 p.m., the school said in a statement.
“This incident is a deep shock to our community, and it is a tragedy,” read a statement from school President Robert Robbins. “I have no words that can undo it, but I grieve with you for the loss, and I am pained especially for Tom’s family members, colleagues and students.”
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UA police were notified before the shooting that a former student had entered an on-campus building that they had been barred from, according to UA Police Chief Paula Balafas. Police were asked to escort the person out, but only a few minutes later, officers received another call that a shooting had occurred in the building, according to Tuscon.com.
The school canceled all in-person classes on the Tucson campus for the remainder of the day and asked all nonessential faculty, staff, and students either to leave the campus or go to their dorms, according to the school’s statement.
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“It’s a tremendously tragic event,” Balafas said. “We feel so incredibly bad for the professor’s family, friends and colleagues, and our hearts just really go out to them.”
