One person is dead and two more were injured in a shooting at Old Dominion University that is being investigated as a terrorist attack, FBI officials confirmed Thursday.
Dominique Evans, the special agent in charge of the Norfolk FBI field office, confirmed the shooter was Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, a former Army National Guardsman who pleaded guilty to plotting a terrorist attack on U.S. soil and was sentenced to prison in 2017.
Officials have not formally released information about the victims' identifications.
Jalloh, who was honorably discharged from the Army National Guard in 2015, pleaded guilty in 2016 to conspiring with a member of ISIL, a decentralized terrorist organization active in the Middle East and Africa. That ISIL member connected Jalloh to a source in the U.S. who turned out to be an FBI informant.
Jalloh met ISIL members in Nigeria and expressed an interest in staging an attack similar to the 2009 attack on Fort Hood in Texas, where 13 people were killed and 32 more were wounded.
Online records from the Federal Bureau of Prisons indicate Jalloh left BOP custody in December 2024.
Evans said besides Jalloh's criminal history, the FBI is investigating the shooting as a terror attack because Jalloh said "Allahu ackbar" before the shooting.
Jalloh opened fire shortly before 10:49 a.m. in a classroom in ODU's Constant Hall.
Sentara spokesman Dale Gauding confirmed that two victims were initially transported to Norfolk Sentara General Hospital in critical condition, where one later died. The other remains there in critical condition as of 3 p.m. Thursday.
The third victim drove to Sentara Independence freestanding emergency department in Virginia Beach, where they were treated and released Thursday.
Evans confirmed that a group of Army ROTC students in the room subdued and killed Jalloh before police arrived. She declined to comment about whether Jalloh had targeted ROTC members.
ODU ROTC spokesman Capt. Tristan Boots told WHRO two of the shooting victims were members of the university's ROTC program, including the one who ultimately died. He said identification would be made pending notification of the victims' next of kin.
Earlier today, an armed individual opened fire at Old Dominion University, leaving one person dead and two others wounded. The shooter is now deceased thanks to a group of brave students who stepped in and subdued him – actions that undoubtedly saved lives along with the quick…
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) March 12, 2026
ODU Police Chief Garrett Shelton said during a press conference, but “it’s not known yet if any police fired their weapon" in the course of responding to the shooting, but Evans said Jalloh was not shot.
"The safety of our campus community is my top priority. We are deeply committed to safeguarding all Monarchs and ensuring a secure learning, living, and working environment at all times," ODU President Brian O. Hemphill wrote in a statement.
"I extend my thoughts and prayers to those impacted by the incident, as well as the entire campus and the broader community."
Classes and other operations on ODU's main Norfolk campus have been cancelled for the remainder of the week "in an effort to provide counseling services and other support for the campus and the community."
Freshman student Elawnie Wilkins said she was on her way to class when she saw people running and heard a gunshot.
"I just kind of ran back to my car. I didn't want to be a part of anything that happened," she told WHRO.
"I just was driving around trying to get back to my dorm. Every street was cut off, so there was no way back to the dorms. I kind of just parked in the parking garage and just let my anxiety settle down.”
Wilkins said that’s the first time she experienced a shooting on campus.
From 2009-2021, law enforcement reported 757 weapons violations on 30 Virginia college campuses, according to reporting by the Virginia Center for Investigative Journalism at WHRO.
Violations peaked at 79 in 2010 and fell to 38 in 2021. In that time, Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond had the highest instances of weapons charges. Between 2009 and 2021, VCU had 439 violations — 58% of the total — and ODU had the next highest number with 80.
Gov. Abigail Spanberger wrote on social media her administration is in touch with the university and "state support is being mobilized to assist ODU and Norfolk."
ODU has set up a Family Information Center in the Chartway Arena's Big Blue Room, located at 4320 Hampton Boulevard in Norfolk.
Hemphill said students, faculty and staff can also get lunch and counseling support at Broderick Dining Commons on Thursday, March 12.
Round-the-clock peer support and online counseling services are available for ODU students through the school's Office of Counseling Services.
For immediate assistance, the university advises students to call the Office of Counseling Services at (757) 683-4401.
If you are experiencing a mental health emergency, please dial 988.
