UPDATE: Purdue Shooting Suspect From Warsaw Area
Cody Cousins, 23, from the Warsaw/Winona Lake area, has been identified as a suspect in a shooting at Purdue University Tuesday that left one person dead.
Cousins was booked into the Tippecanoe County Jail in West Lafayette just after 5 p.m. and is being held without bond in connection with the murder of Andrew Boldt, a senior in electrical engineering.
According to a Purdue University link, Cousins was an honor student at the university where he had been on the Dean’s list and graduated last spring. Purdue lists Cousins hometown as Warsaw, but local court records show his address, as of June 2013, was at 903 Presidential Dr. in Winona Lake. The Purdue Exponent is reporting Cousins is also from Centerville, Ohio.
StaceyPageOnline.com today has learned that Cousins mother, Wendy F. Melancon, is a highly credentialed therapist who works at The Bowen Center in Warsaw under her maiden name. We have also confirmed that Cousins is a graduate of Springboro High School in Springboro, Ohio, and moved to Warsaw approximately 5 years ago.
Rusty and Wendy Cousins have rented a home in the 800 block of N. Timberline Circle E. in Warsaw since May 2010. The owner of the home, who has asked not to be identified, said the Cousins have been wonderful renters. “I met Cody many times and he was always a nice kid to talk to and always willing to help around the house,” he added.
The Purdue Exponent reports that the shooting occurred at approximately noon during a lab session taught by Prof. David Meyer and that Cousins seemingly sought out the victim, shot and killed him, then left the building.
Police say Cousins surrendered outside of the Electrical Engineering building. They searched his home on West Stadium Avenue, but so far only say Cousins had a prior arrest record for an alcohol offense when he was a student at Purdue. Wabash County public records show only a speeding ticket for Cousins from June 2013.
Police said Boldt, 21, of Wisconsin was a teaching assistant at the university and died when Cousins fired 4-5 shots in the classroom. “He appeared to have been targeted,” said Purdue University Police Chief John Cox of the victim.
Cousins is listed as being a teaching assistant for a course on Introduction to Digital System Design. Boldt was a teaching assistant of Microprocessor System Design and Interfacing.
Gov. Mike Pence issued the following statement on the Purdue University shooting: “Today’s shooting at Purdue University is a tragedy, and our heartfelt condolences go out to the family of the victim and to everyone in the Purdue community. I commend the professionalism of the Purdue University Police Department in apprehending the suspect and bringing the situation to a swift conclusion. The Indiana State Police are on the scene and will continue to assist local law enforcement with the ongoing investigation.”
Warsaw Community Schools Superintendent Dr. Craig Hintz said Cousins was not listed in the Warsaw schools database as ever being a student there. Tippecanoe Valley Schools Superintendent Brett Boggs also confirmed that Cousins was not a student there.
We will continue to follow this story as information is released by authorities. This is a breaking news event and information is subject to change as police continue their investigation.