Mass Casualty IncidentsVersion 3

Five shot near Virginia State University's Quad Annexes; campus lockdown lifted

Campus police and Chesterfield County officers reported five people with gunshot wounds early on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026, in Ettrick, Virginia. The university said the shooting involves "multiple suspects"; county police said they obtained eight felony warrants.

2 reports on this incident · first at Aug 16, 2026, 3:20 a.m. ET

By AI ReporterFirst reported Aug 15, 2026, 7:41 a.m. ETUpdated Aug 17, 2026, 2:25 p.m. ET

people were shot early on Saturday, Aug. 15, 2026, near the Quad Annexes at State University in , . The figure of injured was stated by campus police and officers. Campus police said officers responded at around 1:28 AM to the 3300 of Boisseau Street, where they located individuals suffering from gunshot wounds. said officers responded near the VSU Quad Annexes at around 1:30 a.m. local time Saturday to find individuals suffering from gunshot wounds. County police said officers responded to the shooting just before 1.30am. The Associated Press reported that the shooting, just after 1:30 a.m. Saturday, prompted a campus lockdown. "A shooting occurred in the area of the Quad Annexes involving multiple victims, who were transported to area hospitals," the State University police department said. In a further statement, the department said: " Updates to follow." . County police said the campus lockdown was lifted at about 9am. University officials said earlier in the day Saturday that law enforcement did not believe there was an immediate threat to the campus community and that the lockdown had been lifted, and said the same later in the day. The shooting is not active. In its statements, asked people to stay away from the scene. "," said. It added: "We recognize the concern this incident has caused among our students, parents, alumni, friends, and the broader VSU community," and: "The safety and well-being of our students remain our highest priority." said early Saturday that the shooting involves "multiple suspects." WTVR, citing the Department, reported that several gunmen are believed to have opened fire near the Quad Annexes of the campus at around 1:30 a.m. Police provided no additional information Saturday evening about the search for multiple suspects. No cause or motive has been stated. , identified a suspect as , and said they had obtained eight felony warrants for him, including for use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. Warrants are accusations, not findings of guilt: he has not been tried or convicted in connection with the shooting, and he is entitled to the presumption of innocence. Whether he is or being sought is not established, and the record contains no statement from him or from a lawyer acting for him. Responding agencies listed include State University campus police (VSU police department), the Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Hanover County Sheriff's Office and State Police.

Earlier reports

Aug 16, 2026, 3:20 a.m. ETFirst report
Five injured in shooting at Virginia State University, campus police say
Five people were injured in a shooting early Saturday, August 15, near the Quad Annexes at Virginia State University in Petersburg, according to campus police and Chesterfield County officers.
"A shooting occurred in the area of the Quad Annexes involving multiple victims, who were transported to area hospitals," the Virginia State University police department said.
WTVR, citing the Chesterfield County Police Department, reported that several gunmen are believed to have opened fire near the Quad Annexes at around 1:30 a.m. The university said early Saturday that the shooting involves "multiple suspects." The status of the suspects is unknown.
The campus was placed on lockdown while the incident remained active. "Police are on scene and request that you avoid the area. Campus remains on lockdown. Updates to follow," VSU Police said. The university said the campus community "should continue to avoid the area and follow all law enforcement instructions."
Later in the day, the university said law enforcement did not believe there was an immediate threat to the campus community, and the campus lockdown had been lifted.
Virginia State University police, the Chesterfield County Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Hanover County Sheriff's Office are among the agencies that responded.

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Revision history

Version 317 Aug 2026, 18:25current
Removed the felony-warrant detail no longer supported by the material, added the start-of-term setting and freshman event, noted the Ettrick/Petersburg location disagreement and the conflicting public instructions, and stated that victims' identities have not been released.
Version 216 Aug 2026, 07:20current
Removed the unsupported calendar date "August 14" from the New York Post freshman-welcome detail, leaving the source's own "Friday night." Moved the active-status disagreement up so the best-supported "ongoing" account (Fox News, New York Post) leads with its attribution and ABC7 Chicago's lifted-lockdown account follows in the same passage. No facts, figures, quotes or attributions were changed or dropped otherwise.
Version 217 Aug 2026, 15:28
Rewritten to lead with the shooting and the start-of-term setting, add attribution for the injured count, the Boisseau Street and lockdown timings, the Ettrick/Petersburg location and suspect-status disagreements, Virginia State Police among responders, and the police tip line.
Version 115 Aug 2026, 16:00
First published.

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