The suspect in the shooting at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, on Thursday (March 12, 2026) has been identified as Mohamed Jalloh, a former Army National Guardsman.
Jalloh was also convicted in 2016 for offering material support to ISIS.
Speaking to the media about the incident, FBI Special Agent Dominique Evans said that 36-year-old Jalloh barged into a Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) classroom at the Virginia college, shouting 'Allahu Akbar', before opening fire. ROTC instructor, Lt. Col. Brandon Shah, was killed in the shooting, while two people were injured.
Evans said that when Jalloh walked in, he asked someone if it was the ROTC class. When he received an affirmative answer, he opened fire. Fortunately, some students present in the classroom were able to subdue and kill him. By the time authorities arrived at the spot, Jalloh was already dead.
As per reports, Jalloh was a naturalised US citizen originally hailing from Sierra Leone. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison for offering material support to ISIS in 2017. Jalloh met ISIS members in 2016, during a six-month trip to Africa. He pleaded guilty and admitted meeting an ISIS member, who introduced him to an individual in the US, who turned out to be an FBI informant.
Jalloh had told that FBI informant that he wanted to execute a terror attack inspired by the 2009 mass shooting in Ft Hood, Texas, where a US Army major shouted "Allahu Akbar" before he fatally shot 13 people and injured 32 others. He also said that he wanted to plan the attack in the month of Ramadan. He was released from prison in December 2024, before the completion of his 11-year sentence.
The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating the case as an act of terrorism. In a statement, FBI Director Kash Patel said that the bureau is treating the shooting as "an act of terrorism," and the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force will investigate it in coordination with local police.