(NewsNation) — 43-year-old Anthony Dwayne McRae was identified by authorities as the suspected gunman who opened fire in two academic buildings on the campus of Michigan State University in Lansing on Monday, killing three and leaving five critically injured.
Here is what we know about McRae:
McRae, described by authorities as a Black man wearing red shoes, a jean jacket and a baseball cap, was found dead at approximately 11:35 p.m. ET from a self-inflicted gunshot wound off-campus in the city of Lansing hours after the shooting began, according to MSU Police Deputy Chief Chris Rozman.
Rozman said McRae had no known ties to the university and was not a student or a staff member.
A caller’s tip helped identify him, Rozman said.
What was his motive?
Police continue to search for a motive in the shooting and have not officially said what led McRae to open fire on the campus.
“We have no idea why he came to campus to do this tonight,” Rozman said.
McRae’s father, Michael McRae, however, told NBC News on Tuesday that Anthony became bitter after his mother died of a stroke in 2020, and that he “didn’t care about anything anymore.”
McRae turned “evil and mean” and became a recluse, his father said in the interview.
Was he targeting schools?
Police said no threats had been made against Michigan State in the days preceding the attack.
However, the MSU Police and Public Safety confirmed that police found a note on McRae when they discovered his body.
The note in his pocket indicated a threat to two schools in Ewing Township, New Jersey, where he had ties, according to a statement by the Ewing Police Department.
Did he have a criminal history?
McRae had a previous misdemeanor conviction for possessing a loaded firearm in a vehicle in 2019.
NBC News reported court records show Lansing police officers approached him sitting on the back steps of a building, smoking a cigarette where he admitted to being armed without a permit.
Officers found a Ruger LCP .380 semi-automatic pistol in his pants pocket, according to the report.
He was originally charged with a felony for carrying a concealed weapon, but pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor and was sentenced to probation.
He spent a year and a half on probation for the firearm conviction and was discharged in May 2021.
McRae also had two misdemeanors in 2006 for driving with a suspended license, according to state police records.
Where did he live, work?
McRae lived with his father in a home in Lansing, Michigan. He had two siblings, according to his mother’s obituary, including a sister who told CNN she is “shocked” by the news and that she had “no idea” what motived her brother to carry out the shooting.
According to NBC News, McRae quit his job at a warehouse, where he loaded refrigerators into delivery trucks, after the sudden death of his mother.
His father believed McRae may have been trying to apply for a job at Michigan State University, according to the report.
What type of weapons did he have?
Authorities did not disclose the type of weapon used during the shooting, nor whether McRae was armed with more than one gun.
Rozman said a weapon was recovered, but that officials do not have any other information that can be released about the gun that was used.
According to a Heavy report citing scanner audio, McRae had multiple magazines and a second gun in a backpack.
McRae’s father told The Washington Post that McRae had “lied about having a firearm inside their house and firing the gun in his backyard.”
He said he “confronted the son about gunshots he heard in his backyard,” but McRae told his father the sound was fireworks, according to the Post report.
Rozman did not say how McRae obtained the weapon or whether it was purchased legally, saying that was part of the ongoing investigation.
This story is developing and will be updated.