The search for the mass shooter who killed two students and wounded nine others at Brown University has stretched into its sixth day Thursday.
Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville alleged that one of the victims may have been specifically targeted because she was a Republican leader on campus.
Ella Cook, a 19-year-old sophomore and vice president of the Brown University College Republicans, was killed in the December 13 shooting along with Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, an 18-year-old freshman.
“One of the individuals killed at Brown University was from Mountain Brook, Alabama. A young lady named Ella Cook,” Tuberville said Tuesday. “She was a Republican leader in the school’s college Republican club at Brown University. You can’t tell me she wasn’t targeted. I would hate to miss the opportunity to say that, because the circumstances here are very, very fishy.”
Tuberville wasn’t alone in asking if Cook was the target of the attack —
STEVE BANNON: This young woman was targeted. We need to immediately have a full disclosure of was she targeted or not. If she’s not targeted, then continue to move on with the investigation. — You have to take Action, Action, Action. pic.twitter.com/vDEBlLN2mi
— Bannon’s WarRoom (@Bannons_WarRoom) December 18, 2025
The shooting occurred around 4 p.m. on Saturday. The gunman entered the classroom, fired over 40 rounds from a 9mm handgun, and fled on foot. More than 400 police officers, along with federal agents from the ATF and FBI, responded to the scene.
A person of interest was initially detained in Coventry, Rhode Island, on Sunday morning but was released Sunday night after evidence pointed in a different direction. The shooter has not yet been identified, and Providence police have released surveillance images and videos of a masked suspect casing the campus and surrounding neighborhood before the attack.
Authorities have offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to the suspect’s capture.
Cook, a devoted Christian, was remembered by her pastor as “an incredible, grounded, faithful bright light” who encouraged and lifted up those around her.
“Ella was known for her bold, brave, and kind heart as she served her chapter and her fellow classmates,” Martin Bertao, president of the College Republicans of America, said in a statement.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted about Cook on social media: “There are no words. Thinking of her family and friends, especially her parents. God please bless them.”
Vice President JD Vance offered condolences, writing: “This beautiful young girl was one of the murdered students at Brown University. It takes special courage to lead an organization of conservatives on a left wing campus, and I am very sorry our country has lost one of its bright young stars.”
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey ordered flags flown at half-staff until December 19 in Cook’s memory.
Umurzokov’s sister told reporters that her brother had suffered a neurological condition as a child that required surgery and later wore a back brace due to scoliosis. The experience inspired him to pursue medicine.
“He had so many hardships in his life, and he got into this amazing school and tried so hard to follow through with the promise he made when was 7 years old,” she said. Umurzokov was not enrolled in the economics class but had accompanied a friend to the review session.
Of the nine wounded students, eight remained hospitalized as of December 14, with one in critical condition and seven in critical but stable condition. Two have since been discharged.
Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to contact Providence Police at 401-272-3121.