TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Two people are dead and at least six people are recovering in the hospital after a gunman opened fire at Florida State University, FSU Police Chief Jason Trumbower said during a news conference, just after 4:30 p.m.
The shooter has been identified as 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, the son of a Leon County Sheriff's Office deputy, Sheriff Walter McNeil said during the conference.
"This is a heinous crime," McNeil said. "Our deepest condolences go out to the FSU family."
WATCH BELOW: Officials hold news briefing on fatal shooting at Florida State University
McNeil did not include the deputy's first name but lauded her accomplishments.
"Deputy Ikner has been with the Leon County Sheriff's Office for over 18 years," he said. "She has done a tremendous job; her service to this community has been exceptional."
Ikner had obtained access to his mom’s weapon and was “engaged in a number of training programs” that the agency offered, McNeil added.
The deputy's former service weapon was also found at the scene, the sheriff's office said.
Police said the two deaths are not students at the university, but the shooter is believed to be a student.
WATCH: Active shooter reported on Florida State University campus
Six people were being treated at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, Trumbower said, and the shooter is also receiving medical attention.
The shooting was first reported Thursday at around noon in the area of the Student Union.
The university issued a "shelter in place" for hours while securing the campus and getting students to safety, before announcing that law enforcement had “neutralized the threat," shortly after 3 p.m.
All classes and business operations on the main campus are canceled through Friday, April 18, the university said—two weeks before the university’s scheduled commencement ceremony for graduates on May 2 and May 3.
The lockdown lasted for hours because law enforcement had to go door to door, checking each campus building for danger or victims. We caught some of it as it happened— this person was found hiding in a bathroom across from the Student Union: pic.twitter.com/x9BHDEQ2bf
— Forrest Saunders (@FBSaunders) April 17, 2025
Scripps Florida Capitol reporter Forrest Saunders was on campus as the scene unfolded Thursday afternoon and reported seeing multiple people injured being loaded into ambulances outside the Student Union. He said one man was shackled by law enforcement before being taken from the scene.
WATCH: Florida State University students seen leaving the area
Hundreds of students were seen walking away from the direction of the student union. Students were glued to their phones, some visibly emotional, while others hugged each other. Dozens gathered near the music school waiting for news.
I have seen multiple injured being loaded into ambulances outside the Student Union. One man was shackled by law enforcement before being taken from the scene. pic.twitter.com/OfzKCxuB1J
— Forrest Saunders (@FBSaunders) April 17, 2025
Ryan Cedergren, a 21-year-old communications student, said he and about 30 others hid in the bowling alley in the lower level of the student union after seeing students running from a nearby bar.
“In that moment, it was survival,” he said.
After about 15 minutes of hiding, university police escorted the students out of the union and he saw a person getting emergency treatment on the lawn, he said.
Junior Joshua Sirmans, 20, was in the university’s main library when he said alarms began going off warning of an active shooter. Law enforcement officers escorted him and other students out of the library with their hands over their heads, he said.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, and other lawmakers and officials, took to social media to share thoughts on the shooting.
“Our prayers are with our FSU family and state law enforcement is actively responding,” DeSantis wrote on X.
The university is now asking individuals who may have witnessed anything of value to call 850-891-4987 and the FBI is asking people to submit pictures and videos of today's shooting to www.fbi.gov/fsushooting.
WATCH: Boynton Beach mother copes with fear, worries amid FSU shooting
This isn't the first shooting at FSU. Back in 2014, there was a shooting at FSU’s Strozier Library that injured three people. Authorities said on Nov. 19, 31-year-old Myron May shot an employee and two students. May was an FSU alumnus. He was killed by police officers.
Nearby Florida A&M University has announced Thursday afternoon that classes and student activities are canceled for the rest of the day, in response to the shooting.
RELATED COVERAGE:
State
FSU shooting: What lawmakers, officials are saying
State
