Student arrested on murder charges after 2 found dead in a Colorado college dorm

DENVER (AP) — A student was arrested Monday on murder charges over the shootings of two people who were found dead in a dorm room last week at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, police said.

The Colorado Springs Police Department said they arrested Nicholas Jordan, 25, without incident on two counts of first-degree murder. Jordan was a student at the school at the time of the shooting, said university spokesperson Jenna Press.

The victims were identified as Celie Rain Montgomery, 26, and Samuel Knopp, 24, a student at the university about 69 miles (111 kilometers) south of Denver. Montgomery was not currently enrolled.

After getting an arrest warrant, the police’s motor vehicle theft unit found Jordan in a car and the tactical enforcement unit took him into custody in Colorado Springs, police announced on the social media platform X.

Friday’s shooting appeared to be an “isolated incident” between people who knew each other, not a random attack at the school, police said. While the coroner’s office will determine how they died, each victim was shot at least once, police previously said.

The police department was called early Friday morning about shots fired from the university’s dormitory, Creston House, where they found the two already dead.

A campus-wide lockdown was issued for 90 minutes after the shooting, and the university remained closed for the day and through the weekend. Monday classes have been canceled while the school offers walk-in counseling.

Dozens gathered for a memorial walk Monday at the school, which is home to more than 11,000 students and nearly 2,000 faculty and staff.

It’s unknown if Jordan has an attorney who can comment on his behalf. Court records aren’t yet available in the case, and a hearing hasn’t been scheduled.

___ Bedayn is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Jesse Bedayn, The Associated Press