Killer remains at large in University of Colorado double homicide: Police

(COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.) — Classes at the University of Colorado were canceled for a “day of healing” Monday as investigators continued to work to identify a suspect in the fatal shooting of two people on Friday in a dorm room on the Colorado Springs campus, authorities said.

The victims of the double homicide were identified Sunday afternoon as 26-year-old Celie Rain Montgomery of Pueblo, Colorado, and 24-year-old Samuel Knopp of Parker, Colorado, according to the Colorado Springs Police Department. Kopp was a registered student at the school while Montgomery was not currently registered, police said.

“Since the beginning of this investigation, the primary focus has been on the victims of this tragic incident and pursuing justice for them and their families,” Colorado Springs police said in a statement. “This remains an active investigation, which includes detectives continuing to develop additional investigative leads and suspect information.”

The El Paso County Coroner’s Office conducted autopsies on Montgomery and Kopp on Saturday, but the results have not been made public.

“While the Coroner’s Office will determine the cause and manner of death, Celie Montgomery and Samual Knopp’s deaths are being investigated as homicides,” according to the police statement.

Few details have been released about the killings by police, who cited the “fluid nature” of the investigation.

“While acknowledging the difficulty of the situation and the withholding of information in the initial stages of the investigation, we owe it to the victims and their families to deliver accountability and justice for this horrific act,” police said.

The campus dispatch center received a call of shots fired just before 6 a.m. Friday, Colorado Springs police said. Campus officers responded to a room at Crestone House, a campus dormitory, and found two people dead from gunshot wounds, police said.

“This incident does not appear to be a murder-suicide and both deaths are being investigated as homicides,” police said Friday evening. “We are continuing to develop and follow investigative leads and will provide additional information when it becomes available.”

Colorado Springs police still believe it is an isolated incident “between parties that were known to one another and not a random attack against the school or other students at the university.”

The campus was initially put on lockdown for several hours Friday, a university spokesperson said, however, classes were canceled through Monday, but the campus would be open for a “Day of Healing.”

“We are in shock as we process this tragic loss of two lives,” university Chancellor Jennifer Sobanet said at a news conference. “My heart is broken for the victims of today’s senseless violence.”

The killings marked the third and fourth homicides in Colorado Springs this year, according to police. At this time last year, the city had recorded two homicides.

ABC News’ Amanda Morris contributed to this report.

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