Chad Wolf to Newsmax: Brown Campus Camera Failures Raise Alarms

Former acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf told Newsmax on Saturday that failures in campus security and surveillance systems at Brown University complicated the investigation into a deadly shooting that authorities say left two students dead and exposed broader vulnerabilities at U.S. colleges.

Wolf said investigators are still working to determine what drove Claudio Manuel Neves Valente to allegedly carry out deadly attacks tied to both Brown University and a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, as scrutiny intensifies over security failures at the Ivy League campus.

Wolf, now executive vice president for Homeland Security and Immigration at the America First Policy Institute, made the comments during an appearance on "Wake Up America Weekend" as questions mounted about the lack of publicly released surveillance footage during the manhunt.

Authorities believe Neves Valente, 48, was responsible for a mass shooting Saturday at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, that killed two students and wounded nine others.

Investigators also suspect he fatally shot 47-year-old Nuno Loureiro at the professor's home in Brookline, Massachusetts, days later. Neves Valente was later found dead in a storage facility following a multistate search.

Asked about a possible motive, Wolf emphasized that investigators are still piecing together the suspect's background and personal relationships.

"Yeah, I think, well, we're still learning. Obviously. He went to Brown University, then had some kind of relationship. It appears to be back in Portugal with the professor that he shot or allegedly shot at MIT," Wolf said. "So I think as the investigation continues, they'll likely uncover what the exact motive is. But clearly there's a relationship to both Brown and to the MIT professor."

Authorities have not identified any political motivation for the attacks. Reporting has suggested the grievances may have been personal or connected to academic or professional disputes, though officials have not confirmed a specific cause.

Wolf said the investigation faced early challenges due to limited information and security shortcomings at Brown, particularly involving surveillance cameras.

"Yeah. Look, I think there's a lot of frustration early on in the investigation. It didn't seem as though police there at Brown had enough information," he said. "And the fact that they didn't have working cameras in this building is almost ... it's unfathomable, right?"

Wolf said college campuses have increasingly become flashpoints for violence and should be equipped with modern security systems, even if they remain open environments.

"I mean, college campuses we have seen over the last several years, and even going back prior to that, seem to be almost ground zero for a lot of political violence. And while this may not be political violence, it's violence nevertheless," Wolf explained.

Wolf said the absence of functioning cameras and delays in releasing images hampered efforts to quickly identify the suspect, even as officials asked the public for assistance. He noted that the break in the case ultimately came from a community member who provided critical information to police.

"Had that individual not come forward, we still may be looking for this individual today," he said.

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