A homeless man has been credited with breaking open the investigation into the shootings at Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after confronting the gunman and providing crucial information to authorities.
Federal authorities said the man, identified only as John, is now entitled to a $50,000 reward for his role in helping investigators identify Claudio Neves Valente as the suspect. Officials said John provided key details about the suspect’s vehicle after a strange encounter with him on the day of the first shooting.
“He blew this case right open,” Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha said while praising the tipster.
Before John came forward, investigators were struggling to identify the gunman who killed two Brown University students and, two days later, fatally shot an MIT professor. His information proved pivotal in advancing the investigation.
It was not immediately clear when the reward would be paid, but the FBI indicated that John was eligible. “It would be logical to think that, absolutely, that individual would be entitled to that,” said Ted Docks, the FBI’s special agent in charge.
John’s involvement became public after he began posting on Reddit that he recognised images of the suspect circulated by authorities following the shootings. “I’m being de@d serious,” one of the posts said, according to court documents. “The police need to look into a grey Nissan with Florida plates, possibly a rental.”
“I know because he used his key fob to open the car, approached it, and then something prompted him to back away,” he added. “When he backed away, he relocked the car. I found that odd, so when he circled the block, I approached the car that is when I saw the Florida plates.”
At that stage of the investigation, authorities had no information linking any vehicle to the shooter.
After John’s identity became known to police during the manhunt, he met with investigators and described a strange “cat and mouse” encounter with the suspect on the day of the shooting. He said he encountered Neves Valente in the bathroom of Brown University’s engineering building just hours before the attack and noted that the suspect’s clothing was “inappropriate and inadequate for the weather.”
Sources said John had been living in the basement of the engineering building at the time. He later encountered Neves Valente outside the building and decided to follow him.
According to court documents, John shouted at the suspect, “Your car is back there, why are you circling the block?” The suspect allegedly replied, “I don’t know you from nobody,” and repeatedly asked, “Why are you harassing me?”
Using the information provided by John, authorities reviewed additional surveillance footage that eventually led them to identify Neves Valente as the suspect.
Nearly 24 hours later, investigators located Neves Valente dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
