On December 7, 2023, a tragic event took place on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), where three members of the faculty were killed, and another was left in critical condition.
The shooter, 67-year-old Anthony Polito, a former business professor at UNLV, initiated the deadly attack, leaving the university community in a state of shock and mourning.
Polito, reportedly denied employment opportunities at various colleges in Nevada, embarked on a lethal shooting spree at the UNLV business school. The attack claimed the lives of three esteemed professors, 64-year-old Cha Jan “Jerry” Chang, 39-year-old Patricia Navarro-Velez and 69-year-old Naoko Takemaru. All died from gunshot wounds. A visiting professor, aged 38, suffered critical injuries.
Investigations revealed that Polito was heavily armed, carrying over 150 rounds of ammunition and nine loaded magazines.
A “target list” found with the shooter included names of faculty from UNLV and East Carolina University, where he had previously taught. None of the victims were on this list.
Polito, living in Henderson, Nevada, had been facing financial difficulties and was recently evicted.
The tragedy developed in a matter of minutes, with the shooter opening fire on three different floors of the business school building. Two victims were discovered on the third floor and one on the fourth. The rampage ended approximately ten minutes after it began when the suspect was fatally shot in an exchange of gunfire with police.
Prior to the shooting incident, Polito had dispatched 22 letters to various faculty members throughout the United States. These letters, containing harmless white powder, indicate a premeditated aspect of his actions. Despite this, investigators are still piecing together the motive behind his actions, with his repeated job rejections in Nevada being a notable factor.
The victims, Navarro-Velez, Chang, and Takemaru, were integral members of the UNLV community. Navarro-Velez, an assistant professor in accounting, had been with UNLV for nearly five years, focusing on teaching accounting information systems. Her research interests included cybersecurity disclosures and data analytics.
Chang, serving as an associate professor in the Management, Entrepreneurship & Technology department of UNLV’s business school, had been a faculty member there since 2001. His academic journey included degrees from Taiwan, Central Michigan University, and Texas A&M University, culminating in a Ph.D. in management information systems from the University of Pittsburgh.
Takemaru, an associate professor of Japanese Studies, had received the William Morris Award for Excellence in Teaching from the College of Liberal Arts at UNLV. She was in charge of the entire Japanese Studies program and taught upper-division courses on Japanese language, culture and business.
UNLV President Keith E. Whitfield, in a statement, expressed profound grief over the loss of Dr. Navarro and Dr. Chang, as well as the emotional and physical impact of this act of violence on the university community.
This incident marks one of the darkest days in UNLV’s history. The university, law enforcement, and the broader academic community continue grappling with the aftermath.