Michigan State Shooter Had 2 Guns, 2 Page Note: Police

EAST LANSING, MI — The man who police said fatally shot three students and wounded five others at the Michigan State University campus Monday night was armed with two guns, numerous magazines of ammunition and two-page handwritten note.

Officers found two 9 mm handguns and ammunition with 43-year-old Anthony McRae after he shot himself Monday night, Deputy Campus Police Chief Chris Rozman said during a Thursday news conference.

McRae was carrying one pistol and had a second handgun in his backpack with multiple loaded magazines, police said.

The two handguns were purchased legally by McRae, but were not properly registered, police said.

McRae was charged with carrying a concealed pistol without a concealed carry permit, a felony, in June 2019, according to state records.

However, McRae eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor possession of a loaded firearm charge and was sentenced to probation from October 2019 to May 2021, according to state records.

Since McRae wasn't charged with a felony, state and federal laws allowed him to buy a gun once his probation period ended, according to the Detroit News.

McRae bought two handguns in Michigan in 2021 soon after his probation ended, police said. Police did not confirm if the handguns were used in the shooting at Michigan State or if he used one of the guns to shoot himself.

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Police also said detectives are investigating a two-page note officers found in McRae's wallet. One note may contain a possible motive why McRae shot at students Monday night, police said.

"It appears based on the content of the note that he felt that he was slighted in some way by people or businesses," Rozman said. "Did a mental health issue amplify that or was it a component of that? We’re not sure at this point."

While the note may provide some context, police still couldn't find any connection between McRae and the university, other than McRae’s father saying his son tried to get a job there, police said.

The notes also listed a handful of other potential targets, including a Meijer distribution center in Delta Township (where he previously worked) and against two schools and a church in New Jersey where he once lived, police said.

Police believe McRae was walking home when officers confronted him near Lake Lansing Road and Larch Street, a few miles from the university's campus. McRae said nothing to officers before taking his own life, police said.

Teresa Woodruff, the university's interim president, said four of the five students wounded in the shooting, remain in critical condition but some "are showing signs of improvement." One student's condition improved to stable condition Thursday morning.

The three students who died were from metro Detroit: Brian Fraser, 20, Arielle Anderson, 19, and Alexandria Verner, 20.

Legendary Michigan State Spartans men's basketball coach Tom Izzo spoke words of comfort during a Wednesday night vigil.

"Our hearts are heavy. Our loss has been great. Our lives have been permanently changed," Izzo said. "But with a shared commitment to help each other, and a promise to remember those we have lost, we will learn to find joy once again."