Overview
- Providence Mayor Brett Smiley asked the FBI to award the $50,000 reward to the anonymous tipster known as “John,” with the bureau yet to announce a decision.
- Authorities identified the suspect as Claudio Neves Valente, accused of killing Brown students Ella Cook and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov on Dec. 13 and MIT professor Nuno F. G. Loureiro on Dec. 15.
- Investigators say the Reddit post prompted a recheck of surveillance, which, combined with Flock Safety license‑plate data, led to an Alamo rental in Valente’s name.
- Valente was found dead in a Salem, New Hampshire storage unit from a self‑inflicted gunshot wound; an autopsy indicates he died roughly two days before discovery.
- Officials have not determined a motive as they reconstruct Valente’s movements, noting he obscured his face, used a hard‑to‑trace phone, and swapped license plates.