UPDATE FEBRUARY 23, 2024: The UCCS student who allegedly shot his dorm roommate and a female friend on Monday had a history of disagreements with his roommate over marijuana use and cleanliness.
A witness told police that the roommate, Samuel Knopp, reported the suspect, Nicholas Jordan, for smoking pot in their shared room and for not keeping their room clean, reports KKTV.
ORIGINAL FEBRUAYR 20,2024 ARTICLE:
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – A University of Colorado – Colorado Springs (UCCS) student was arrested Monday for allegedly killing his roommate and a woman in his dorm room.
The victims, Celie Rain Montgomery, 26, and Samuel Knopp, 24, were found shot to death at Crestone House on Friday by campus police after shots were heard around 6 a.m., reports KXRM.
Police said the deaths were not murder-suicides and were being investigated as homicides, reports CBS News. By Friday evening, Nicholas Jordan, 25, Knopp’s roommate, was identified as the suspected shooter, and police had obtained a warrant for his arrest, reports USA Today.
Jordan was found in a vehicle about 3 miles from campus early Monday morning and taken into custody without incident, reports ABC News.
Immediately after the shots were fired, the campus was placed on lockdown. On social media, UCCS police posted the following emergency notification: “Urgent UCCSAlert: Lockdown! Lock interior doors. Turn out the lights. Move away from sight. Do not open the door. Maintain silence. Evade/Defend,” reports KKTV.
The campus was closed on Friday and over the weekend, and meetings, events, and other activities on campus were cancelled.
Authorities say the shooting was not random and was an isolated incident between individuals who knew each other. Knopp and Jordan were both UCCS students, while Montgomery attended Pueblo Community College.
Jordan faces two counts of first-degree murder and is being held on $1 million bond at the El Paso County Jail.
