UNLV Mass Shooter Reportedly Failed to Land Teaching Job at Campus

Posted on: December 7, 2023, 08:57h. 

Last updated on: December 8, 2023, 06:04h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More
Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

The man who fatally shot three victims and injured a fourth at UNLV on Wednesday is reportedly a professor who failed to get a job at the Las Vegas university.

Students and law enforcement at UNLV
Students and law enforcement at UNLV, pictured above. Students went for cover after a gunman opened fire on the campus. Three died. Others were hospitalized. (Image: CNN)

ABC News identified the now-deceased mass shooter as Anthony Polito, 67. He formerly worked at East Carolina University in North Carolina, the Associated Press reported. Polito taught business subjects throughout his academic career.  He most recently lived in Henderson, Nev.

Initially, Polito went to the fourth floor of the Frank and Estella Beam Hall on the campus, which houses the Lee Business School. He began firing his handgun at about 11:45 a.m., stopping off at other floors in the building before heading outside. As many as 20 shots were fired, according to witnesses.

The names of the murdered victims weren’t released immediately by authorities. The deceased were UNLV faculty or staff, according to ABC News. The fourth victim was rushed to a local hospital for treatment of injuries. That patient was in critical but stable condition as of Wednesday night.

Four others on the UNLV campus were transported to area hospitals for treatment of panic-related symptoms, CNN reported.

UNLV Shelter in Place

UNLV student Carlos Casillas
UNLV student Carlos Casillas, second from right, prays at the Las Vegas Convention Center reunification area. Students went to the center following a shooting on the campus. (Image: The Sun)

Two university police officers then confronted Polito, who fired shots at them. The officers returned fire, killing him.

As the shooting unfolded, panicked students rushed for cover and hid in campus buildings. They were told by university security to shelter in place. The all-clear was issued by UNLV security about 40 minutes after the incident began.

One economics faculty member, Stephen Miller, told Casino.org he was in his fifth-floor office in Beam Hall when the fire alarm sounded.

“I went down the stairwell. Halfway down, I heard many sirens. When I exited the stairwell, I saw students running away from the building.”

Campus Closes

Following the shooting, UNLV canceled classes and many other activities through Sunday, according to Las Vegas TV station KLAS.

Officials also temporarily closed Beam Hall, the Flora Dungan Humanities Building, the student union, Wright Hall buildings A, B, and C, and the UNLV bookstore.

Most faculty and staff will work from home for the rest of this week. A UNLV basketball game was also canceled at the University of Dayton, Ohio.

Numerous messages of sympathy were offered nationwide for the UNLV campus. To show their support for UNLV, Resorts World Las Vegas and the Strat Hotel, Casino & Tower lit up marquees Wednesday night with the words: “#UNLV Strong #Vegas Strong.”