Updated (10/10/2017, 6 p.m.) with additional details.
A 19-year-old freshman at Texas Tech University, in Lubbock, Tex., was charged on Tuesday with capital murder in the shooting death on Monday night of a 48-year-old campus police officer and father of two.
The student, Hollis A. Daniels, is accused of shooting Floyd East Jr. in the head while being booked on drug charges. Mr. Daniels, who the police say has confessed to the shooting, was taken into custody after campus police officers found evidence of drugs and drug paraphernalia in his dormitory room. The discovery was made during a student-welfare check, a university spokesman said.
Mr. Daniels snatched the officer’s body camera and fled on foot, the police said. The university issued a campus lockdown and urged students to “take shelter.” Mr. Daniels was later found and arrested near the Lubbock Municipal Coliseum, across from the campus football stadium.
It was still unclear on Tuesday afternoon how the suspect had access to a gun in the police station. Immediately after the shooting, social media lit up with comments about Texas’ campus-carry law, which took effect a year ago and allows licensed gun owners to bring guns into campus buildings. At 19, Mr. Daniels was too young to be licensed in the state to carry a gun.
A vigil was planned for the officer on Tuesday, and arrangements were being made for people wishing to donate to his family.
Mr. East began his career with Texas Tech as a guard at the university’s Health Sciences Center in El Paso. While working there, he attended El Paso Community College’s Law Enforcement Academy and obtained his basic peace-officer license.
He graduated from the police academy in June 2016, transferring to Texas Tech’s main campus, in Lubbock, on May 1 as a police officer. He had just finished his field training, on August 31.
During a news conference on Tuesday, Texas Tech’s police chief, Kyle K. Bonath, outlined the events that led to the tragedy. He said officers had received a report on Monday about a student who was acting erratically and possibly was armed. They went to his dorm room and found what they believed were drugs and drug paraphernalia. They arrested Mr. Daniels and transported him to the campus police station.
A police officer left the room where Mr. Daniels was being booked, without handcuffs, and then heard a gunshot, according to a police affidavit. He ran into the room and found Mr. East fatally wounded and Mr. Daniels missing. The officer’s gun remained in his holster, but his body camera was gone, the police said.
The campus counseling center told the police that the suspect’s family members had expressed concerns that he might have a weapon and be considering suicide.
A local newspaper, the San Antonio Express-News, reported that the suspect grew up in Seguin, Tex., where his father was a former city-council member and his mother, a travel writer.
Lawrence Schovanec, the university’s president, issued a statement on Monday night offering his condolences. “The family of the officer is in the thoughts and prayers of the Texas Tech community,” the statement said. “I want to express my deep appreciation to the Texas Tech Police Department, Lubbock Police Department, Lubbock Sheriff’s Office, and other state and federal law-enforcement officials for their response.”
In a written statement, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas also offered his sympathies. “As the Texas Tech campus deals with this heartbreaking tragedy, Cecilia and I pray for the continued safety of the students and the entire community,” he wrote.
Katherine Mangan contributed reporting to this post.