Local law enforcement have yet to make any arrests
Mississippi State saw a tragedy over the weekend when a male student, identified as 21-year-old John Sanderson, was shot and killed just outside the all-male dorm, Evans Hall, late Saturday night.
Mississippi State University police have three suspects in the murder of Sanderson, a transfer student from Madison. The suspects are believed to not be Mississippi State students, and it is unknown whether the victim knew any of the suspects. Dr. Bill Kibler, vice president of student affairs at Mississippi State made a statement, “The perpetrators fled our campus, but we’re still attempting to identify who those perpetrators are and so we’re following every lead in order to do that … Our local city police department and the county sheriff’s office are all participating cooperatively in patrolling our campus and conducting a full scale investigation.”
Mississippi State University president Mark Keenum has assured parents and students that the killing of Sanderson was an isolated event, and there is no indication that there is a danger to other students. Keenum had a press conference Sunday morning, “This is the first time in our school’s history that such a tragic incident has occurred, involving a student being shot on campus. Our campus is known as a safe place, and I was to assure students, parents, faculty, and staff that it continues to be safe … I do not believe there’s any imminent threat to our students on the campus right now.”
Mississippi State senior, Templeton Hardy, who lives at Evans hall, described the scene after the shooting, “Everything was kind of hectic. They wouldn’t let people in. It was a bit of a surprise. You never would think something like this would happen on campus, especially in a dorm.” It was reported that residents of Evans Hall were relocated for the weekend as police investigated and cleaned up the scene.
As of this morning, no arrests have been made.
