(University of Colorado)CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) -
It's still very early in the investigation, but a profile of the suspect involved in a shooting that occurred at an Aurora, Colo., movie theater early Friday morning is beginning to emerge.
The suspect is identified by police as 24-year-old James Eagan Holmes.
Until last month, he was a doctoral student at the University of Colorado's Denver campus, pursuing a Ph.D. in neuroscience. A school spokesperson says Holmes submitted paperwork in June withdrawing from the program but had no information on why he dropped out.
A bartender who knew Holmes as a customer describes him on Twitter as having a "laid back" personality.
Holmes moved to Colorado in 2011 from California. His family lives in an affluent neighborhood in San Diego.
Holmes' mother, a psychiatric nurse, learned of the shooting when she took a call early Friday morning from a reporter. She immediately expressed concern that her son might be involved.
"You have the right person," she said. "I need to call the police."
Later, Holmes' family released a statement saying their "hearts go out to those who involved in this tragedy and to the families and friends of those involved. We are still trying to process this information and we appreciate that people will respect our privacy."
Holmes' father went to Colorado to be with his son.
Until Friday, Holmes' only encounter with police appears to be a traffic ticket he received in 2011.
The FBI is already digging into the suspect's background, developing a profile. An FBI statement said on Friday afternoon that there is no evidence Holmes belonged to any radical or extremist groups or had connections to any extremist websites on the internet.
