Shots fired on Shaw University campus, man in custody, police say

A man fired shots Tuesday on Shaw University's campus in downtown Raleigh, according to police. Students told WRAL News they heard multiple gunshots.

Around 1:30 p.m., a man was taken into custody on campus near the Shaw University International Studies Center at 130 Martin Luther King Blvd. A staff member told WRAL News the first floor of that building is used for classes, and the second floor contains the King Khalid mosque.

According to the Wake County ABC Law Enforcement, an officer was in the area on an unrelated alcohol call and heard the gunshots. A bystander directed him to the international studies center where he held the suspect until Raleigh police arrived to take him into custody.

Raleigh police said the man had at least one firearm, but no one was injured.

A member of the community told WRAL News the man entered the International Studies building after the shots were fired.

Between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., as Drone 5 flew over the scene, a large number of police officers and several police cruisers were outside the building.

One student told WRAL News crew that he heard four gunshots while walking to campus. Other students said police officers were also searching nearby residence halls.

"We got an email saying that we were on lockdown," said Makayla Whitfield, a student. "Where my class was at, we could see out the window, and we saw a bunch of police officers. There were helicopters flying around."

"I just heard four gunshots," said Lary Calhoun. "That's all I heard. I was a little confused. I asked the people around me, 'Were those gunshots?'"

A few minutes later, Calhoun said students received an active shooter alert on their phones.

"To be honest, in my head, I was still thinking that it didn't happen on campus and that somebody was just around the campus or something," Calhoun said.

Calhoun said he didn't notice any difference in the environment around him, but he heard one of his friends who was located closer to where the shots were fired was locked in a classroom for more than 30 minutes.

"I was just hoping everybody was okay ... I wasn't panicking. I tried to stay calm," he said.

Shaw University canceled classes for the rest of the day on Tuesday.

Police said there was no on-going threat to the community.