UGA graduate Lt. Col. Brandon Shah identified as ROTC instructor killed in Old Dominion shooting

NORFOLK, Va. — An ROTC instructor killed in a shooting at Old Dominion University has been identified as a graduate of the University of Georgia.

Lt. Col. Brandon Shah was teaching an ROTC class when a gunman entered the classroom and opened fire. Shah was killed, and two other members of the university community were injured in the attack.

The FBI said it is investigating the shooting as an act of terrorism.

Shah was a veteran Army aviator and a professor of military science in the ROTC program at Old Dominion University, where he also earned his bachelor’s degree, according to his biography on the university’s website.

He later received a Master of Business Administration from the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business, which named him a Terry Trailblazer in 2022.

Authorities identified the shooter as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, a former Army National Guardsman who was previously convicted of providing material support to the Islamic State group.

According to ABC News sources, Jalloh entered the Old Dominion classroom Thursday and asked if it was an ROTC class. After someone responded yes, he allegedly shot Shah multiple times.

The FBI said ROTC students intervened and rendered Jalloh “no longer alive.” Authorities did not specify how the students killed him but said he was not shot.

Jalloh was convicted in 2016 of attempting to provide material support to the militant group and was sentenced in 2017 to 11 years in prison. Bureau of Prisons records show he was released in December 2024 on supervised release.

FBI Director Kash Patel said on social media that the campus shooting is being investigated as an act of terrorism.