A mass shooting at Florida State University on Thursday left two men dead and five others wounded after a student allegedly used his mother’s old service weapon to open fire near the student union.
The suspect, 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, was shot and injured by police during the attack. He remains hospitalized with serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
Authorities say Ikner is the son of a long-serving Leon County deputy sheriff.
“Unfortunately, her son had access to one of her weapons, and that was one of the weapons found at the scene,” said Sheriff Walt McNeil, noting that Ikner had previously taken part in the Sheriff’s Office training programs.
The shooting caused chaos on campus as students scrambled for safety.
“Everything was really quiet, then all chaotic,” a witness told WCTV. Another student, Sam Swartz, said he and others barricaded themselves in a hallway using trash cans and plywood.
“I remember learning to do the best you can to make them take time,” he said.
The victims, two adult males who were not students, have not been publicly identified.
University officials canceled all classes and urged non-resident students to leave campus. “This is a tragic day for Florida State University,” said President Richard McCullough.
Gun violence remains a deeply divisive issue in the U.S., with over 80 mass shootings reported this year.
President Donald Trump called the incident “a horrible thing” but reaffirmed his stance supporting the Second Amendment, saying, “The gun doesn’t do the shooting — the people do.”
