The victims of the Florida State University mass shooting have been identified as the investigation into a motive continues.
The mass shooting on April 17 at the school’s bustling student union building claimed the lives of two people and injured five others.
The shooting unfolded just before noon. FSU police were alerted at 11:50AM and quickly responded.
The campus went into immediate lockdown, urging students to “lock and stay away from all doors and windows and be prepared to take additional protective measures.” The lockdown was lifted by 3:20PM.
The alleged shooter has been identified as Phoenix Ikner, a 20-year-old FSU student and the stepson of Leon County Sheriff’s Deputy Jessica Ikner.
Authorities say he used one of her former service weapons - a handgun - in the attack. He also had a shotgun in his possession.
Ikner was shot by police during the rampage and remains hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
The two lives lost in the shooting have since been identified as Robert Morales, a beloved dining coordinator at FSU, and Tiru Chabba, a regional vice president with Aramark Collegiate Hospitality.
“Today we lost my younger Brother,” wrote Ricardo Morales Jr. in a heartfelt post on X. “He loved his job at FSU and his beautiful Wife and Daughter. I’m glad you were in my Life.”
Robert wasn’t just a valued staff member—he was a founder of Gordos Cuban Cuisine, a popular local restaurant, and a devoted assistant football coach at Leon High School, per NBC Miami.
The school remembered him as a coach with a “true passion for mentoring young athletes.” They added: “He was a trusted coach, a respected colleague, and a cherished friend to many.”
A GoFundMe has been launched to support his surviving family.
Meanwhile, Tiru Chabba, a 45-year-old father of two from Greenville, South Carolina, was confirmed by Strom Law Firm to be the second victim. His death has left the Aramark community reeling, per PEOPLE.
“We are heartbroken to confirm that an Aramark employee was among those killed at FSU yesterday in that senseless act of violence,” the company said in a statement. “Our deepest sympathies are with the family and our entire Aramark community.”
Civil rights attorney Bakari Sellers, representing the Chabba family, said: “Instead of hiding Easter eggs and visiting with friends and family, they’re living a nightmare where this loving father and devoted husband was stolen from them in an act of senseless and preventable violence.”
President Donald Trump, briefed in the Oval Office, said: “These things are terrible. But the gun doesn't do the shooting, the people do… I have an obligation to protect the Second Amendment.”
Ikner, once known as Christian Gunnar Eriksen, had a childhood marred by legal battles and family conflict.
His biological mother, Anne-Mari Eriksen, once fled with him to Norway, violating a custody agreement. She was later jailed and prohibited from contacting him.
Court documents reveal the troubled history, including a lawsuit Anne-Mari filed against Ikner’s father and stepmother, seeking damages for alleged emotional harm to her son. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2016.
While officials have not confirmed a motive, classmates painted a disturbing picture of Ikner’s ideology. He had allegedly been expelled from an FSU political club for extreme comments.