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<\/p>\nFive people were injured in a shooting involving multiple suspects at Virginia State University, prompting a temporary campus lockdown early Saturday just days before the new academic year was set to begin.<\/p>\n
Police have arrested a 19-year-old found hiding in a dormitory closet at the university in connection with the shooting. Camron Harris of Henrico, Virginia, is not a student on campus, Chesterfield County Police said in a statement to The Associated Press.<\/p>\n
Lt. James R. Lamb, with the Chesterfield County Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Major Crimes Unit, confirmed one victim was a student. Investigators believe the other victims may be from the surrounding communities, Lamb told CBS News. He said before Harris’ arrest that the incident was not a drive-by shooting, and police were searching for multiple shooters.<\/p>\n
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Police investigate the scene of a shooting on the campus of Virginia State University on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026, in Petersburg, Va.\u00a0<\/p>\n
WWBT via AP<\/p>\n
Police provided no additional information Saturday evening about the search, and authorities have given no information about a possible motive.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Eight felony warrants have been obtained for Harris, including for malicious wounding and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. It wasn’t immediately clear if he had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.<\/p>\n
The shooting happened around 1:30 a.m outside a university residence hall, and both campus police and the Chesterfield County Police Department are investigating, a university statement said<\/a>. When police arrived, they found five people suffering from gunshot wounds.<\/p>\n The victims were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment. One person is currently in critical condition, while the remaining four sustained injuries that were not life-threatening, the university said.<\/p>\n pic.twitter.com\/f0NBAWU38r<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Virginia State University (@VSU_1882) August 15, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n School officials said a “significant law enforcement presence remains on campus” as police continues its investigation. University officials said earlier in the day that law enforcement did not believe there was an immediate threat to the campus community, and a campus lockdown had been lifted.<\/p>\n The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Hanover County Sheriff’s Office were assisting, county police said.<\/p>\n Virginia State University is a historically Black university in Ettrick, Virginia, about 24 miles south of the state capital of Richmond. The public university has about 5,700 students and was the first fully state-supported four-year college for Black Americans. Classes for the new academic year were set to begin on Monday, CBS News affiliate WTVR<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n According to the university’s website, residence halls opened for students a week ago, and classes are set to begin on Monday. Many students had just completed the university’s “New Trojans Experience” for incoming students.<\/p>\n Arthur Fridrich, the university’s former director of distance education who lives near the campus and visits regularly, told the Associated Press that a shooting just before students return to class is heartbreaking for the community.<\/p>\n “To start a new year with this event is very tragic. It casts a shadow in the minds of all students, and for some it will be difficult to rid their minds of this term,” Fridrich said. “For those that were shot, my heart bleeds. I hope that they all mend and somehow do not let this event define their lives.”<\/p>\n \n More from CBS News\n <\/p>\n \n Go deeper with The Free Press\n <\/p>\n \n