A student accused of fatally shooting his parents at Central Michigan University Friday morning has been apprehended, police say.
James Eric Davis Jr., 19, a Chicago-area native who is thought to have fatally shot his parents at a dormitory on campus, was taken into custody by Central Michigan University Police, the department said Saturday morning.
"The suspect was seen and reported by an individual on a train passing through the north end of campus shortly after midnight," the university said in a statement. "Law enforcement personnel responded and arrested the suspect without incident."
James Davis Sr., the suspect's father, was a part-time police officer in the village of Bellwood, Illinois, the town's mayor, Andrew Harvey, said at a press conference. He confirmed that Davis Sr. and his wife Diva Davis were both killed on the Central Michigan campus on Friday morning.
Authorities later confirmed that the gun used in the incident was registered to the suspect's father.
“(Davis Sr.) was loved by all here at the village of Bellwood,” Harvey said. “We are with heavy hearts today, this has been one of the toughest days for the village of Bellwood in many years.”
Davis Sr. grew up in Bellwood and was a military veteran, Harvey said. The two played together as children.
“He was like a pillar of the community,” Harvey said.
He said he had met Diva Davis at several events and called her a “wonderful woman,” though he did not know her personally.
Davis Jr. is believed to be armed and dangerous. Police advised that anyone who sees him do not approach him and call 911 instead.
A spokeswoman for Central Michigan University confirmed Davis Jr. is from Plainfield, Illinois.
Plainfield Central High School confirmed that Davis Jr. is a former student. Officials said he graduated from the southwest suburban school in 2016. Prior to that he attended Plainfield South, district officials said.
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He was a basketball player at both schools, according to District 202 spokesman Tom Hernandez.
University police believe the shooting developed from a "family-type domestic situation," Lt. Larry Klaus said at a news conference.
Illinois State Rep. Emanuel Chris Welch tweeted Friday afternoon that the shooting "strikes close to home."
"My sincerest condolences go out to the family of Bellwood Police Officer James Davis Sr. and his wife who were shot and killed this morning," he wrote. "May they RIP."
Bellwood police Chief Jiminez Allen said he was good friends with Davis Sr.
“It’s really tragic that we’ve lost James,” Allen told reporters. “James was a close personal friend of mine as well as many other officers on the police department. He will truly be missed.”
The Central Michigan campus remained locked down hours after the shooting as police searched for Davis Jr., the university said.
Klaus did say that university police had contact with Davis Thursday evening and had taken him to a local hospital, possibly for an incident related to drugs, "an overdose or a bad reaction."
Police had advised people to take shelter as officers responded to a report of gunfire at Campbell Hall, a dormitory on the west side of campus, and the campus remained on lockdown by noon. The school, on its last day of before spring break, asked people coming to campus to pick students up to stay away until further notice.
Several law enforcement agencies assisted campus and Mt. Pleasant police in the search for the suspect, including ATF special agents, whom the agency said in a tweet were headed to the university "to assist in a shooting incident that happened at a campus dorm."
Campus police confirmed that victims were found at the dormitory but wouldn't say if the suspect lived there.
The shooting comes just over two weeks after a mass shooting left 17 dead at a high school in Parkland, Florida.
