Three students who all attended the same university have died after being involved in a shooting on Sunday night.
According to tragic reports, Lavel Davis Jr., D’Sean Perry and Devin Chandler were all killed on University of Virginia’s campus this past Sunday, November 13.
Yesterday morning a press conference was held to identify the victims, all three of whom were teammates on the UVA football team.
Reports state that two other students were also shot in the incident, including Michael Hollins Jr., a running back on the team. One of those students is said to be in good condition, though the other remains in critical condition.
At yesterday’s press conference, University of Virginia president Jim Ryan said the shooting took place on a charter bus after the students had returned to campus from a field trip.
A suspect in the shooting, Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., was apprehended “without incident” just before 11 a.m.
Jones, 22, has been arrested and charged with three counts of second-degree murder and three counts of using a handgun in the commission of a felony, as per ESPN. Jones was listed on the University of Virginia’s football team roster in 2018.
Jim Ryan expressed sorrow for the families of the victims in his statement, while Virginia football coach Tony Elliot described the feelings of the team as “devastation and heartache.”
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Elliot said: “I cannot find the words to express the devastation and heartache that our team is feeling today after the tragic events last night that resulted in the deaths of Lavel, D’Sean and Devin, and the others who were injured.
“These were incredible young men with huge aspirations and extremely bright futures. Our hearts ache for their families, their classmates and their friends. These precious young men were called away too soon. We are all fortunate to have them be a part of our lives. They touched us, inspired us and worked incredibly hard as representatives of our program, university and community. Rest in peace, young men.”
Speaking on the shooting itself, Ryan told how the students had traveled to Washington D.C. on Sunday to attend a play as part of a class field trip. There, they supposedly had as meal together, before “someone amongst them chose to do an act of violence.”
University of Virginia police chief Tim Longo said that the university’s multi-disciplinary threat assessment team had been notified in September that Jones had made a comment about having a gun on campus. He added, however, that the person who passed on the information had never seen the gun in question.
“The comment about Mr. Jones owning a gun was not made in conjunction with any threats,” Longo said.
Lavel Davis, Jr was a junior and wide receiver on the UVA football team, and finished his freshman season at UVA with the second most average yards per reception in the nation with 25.75.
D’Sean Perry, meanwhile, was a junior linebacker and defensive end. The third victim, Devin Chandler was a junior wide receiver and kick returner.
Rest in peace to those who lost their lives in this senseless and totally needless incident.
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