A large gathering of students, staff, and faculty members filled a plaza at Florida State University on Friday evening to honor the victims of a horrific shooting that took place the day before. Heads were bowed in a moment of silence for the two individuals who lost their lives and the six others who sustained injuries from the shooting spree.
The suspect, revealed as the stepson of a sheriff’s deputy, reportedly arrived at the university about an hour prior to the incident. Wandering around the campus near a parking garage, he later moved through buildings and open spaces, wielding a handgun, and began his attack just before lunchtime. Law enforcement officers confronted the shooter, 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, a current student of the university, within approximately four minutes. They managed to shoot and incapacitate him, according to Tallahassee police.
While authorities have yet to officially release the names of the deceased, relatives identified one of them as Robert Morales, a longtime dining coordinator at the university who studied criminology in the early 1990s. The other victim was Tiru Chabba, a 45-year-old married father of two from Greenville, South Carolina, who was employed by food service provider Aramark.
In addition to the fatalities, five others were shot, and one person injured while attempting to escape. Medical staff from Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare treated six individuals for gunshot wounds, three of whom underwent surgery. Thankfully, all are expected to survive. Specific details regarding their identities or whether the shooter was among them remain undisclosed.
The tragic event prompted the cancellation of classes on Friday, though some students returned to campus to recover personal belongings such as backpacks and laptops abandoned in the haste of hiding and securing classroom doors before escaping to safety.
Audrey Rothman, a member of the Florida State women’s volleyball team, expressed deep sorrow, stating, “I don’t think any words can do it justice,” after participating in a short prayer circle with fellow teammates.
Investigators believe the weapon Ikner used belonged to his stepmother, an experienced deputy with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, known for her recent role as a middle school resource officer. Following the incident, she took a leave of absence and was reassigned from her duties.
Ikner’s history reveals his involvement as a longstanding member of the Leon County Sheriff’s youth advisory council, a group aimed at fostering communication and leadership skills among young people and law enforcement. The Florida State University junior was studying political science, having completed an associate degree last fall.
Authorities have not yet determined a motive for the attack. Ikner’s past, however, was marked by familial turmoil, including a 2015 incident involving his biological mother, Anne-Mari Eriksen, who took him to Norway against a court order, resulting in legal consequences.
In 2020, Ikner legally changed his name from Christian Eriksen, a choice he made to symbolize overcoming past adversities. The administrative magistrate who signed off on the name change described Ikner as articulate and mature.
This latest shooting, occurring around the time of an event promoting campus unity against hate, posed stark reminders of previous tragedies. The event—part of a project named after Maura Binkley, a student killed in a 2018 yoga studio shooting—aimed to foster a safer community. Students attending Florida State now, some of whom experienced the Parkland school shooting, find themselves confronting trauma once more.
Nearby, the Bethel Missionary Baptist Church began its Good Friday service with prayers dedicated to those affected, reinforcing a message of hope and healing. Pastor R.B. Holmes, visiting the hospital with Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey, vowed community support, stating, “We’re not going to emphasize the tragedy. We’re going to emphasize hope and healing… we will be there for them.”