Police approach the suspect after the shooting at Bridgewater College, Virginia
(Picture: AP)A gunman has shot and killed two police officers at a US college, sparking a protracted campus lockdown and hunt for the killer.
The lockdown began on Tuesday afternoon when Bridgewater College officials sent out a tweet warning students and faculty about a shooter on campus.
The college sent out a follow-up tweet about 2pm saying police had apprehended a suspect after searching the campus but that students should continue sheltering in place.
A news photographer captured an image of the apparent suspect being arrested, laying face-down on the ground as more than a half a dozen law enforcement officers approached with guns drawn.
The college gave the all-clear at about 4.30pm.
No other injuries were reported.
At a news conference on Tuesday night, Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said the shooting happened shortly after the campus officers responded to reports of a suspicious man on campus around 1.20pm. She said that after a brief interaction, the man opened fire on the officers, shot them and fled on foot. The two officers died at the scene.
Officers from state and local law enforcement agencies joined the search and found the suspect off campus. He had waded into a river and was taken into custody on an island in the river, they said.
The suspect, 27-year-old Alexander Wyatt Campbell, was treated for a gunshot wound that was not life threatening.
Ms Geller said it was not clear if he received the wound in an exchange with police or if it was self-inflicted.
Campbell was being held on two counts of capital murder, one count of first degree murder, and one count of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, according to a Virginia State Police news release.
A statement from school president David W. Bushman identified the two officers as campus police officer John Painter and campus safety officer J.J. Jefferson. He said that the campus was mourning the loss of the well-known and well-loved officers. Saying the pair was known as “the dynamic duo,” the statement noted that Mr Painter was the best man at Mr Jefferson’s wedding this year.
“Two members of the Bridgewater College family were senselessly and violently taken from us. The sadness is palpable. Words are not adequate, not nearly so, to express the grief, sadness, fear and - justifiably - the anger we all feel,” Mr Bushman added.
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin ordered flags across the state be flown at half-staff on Wednesday to honour the officers.
“My heart is broken tonight by the tragic loss of two officers at Bridgewater College today...The First Lady and I ask Virginians to keep their family, friends, and the Bridgewater community in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time,” he said in a statement.
Bridgewater College is a private liberal arts college about 125 miles north-west of Richmond.
