U.S. student who killed parents at university in custody

CHICAGO, March 3 (Xinhua) -- A 19-year-old college student charged with killing his parents on his school campus in the U.S. state of Michigan was arrested early Saturday after a nearly daylong manhunt, authorities said.

Michigan State Police has confirmed the suspect, James Eric Davis Jr., was now in custody.

He fatally shot his parents, put the Central Michigan University campus into lockdown on Friday morning, while police conducted an expansive search.

The Central Michigan University said Davis was arrested without incident. "The suspect was seen and reported by an individual on a train passing through the north end of campus shortly after midnight," it said in a statement.

The university identified the two dead as Davis' mother Diva Davis and father James Davis Sr., a part-time police officer in the Chicago suburb of Bellwood. The shooting occurred around 8:30 a.m. local time near the fourth floor of Campbell Hall, a residence building in the campus.

Central Michigan University police Chief Bill Yeagley said that the gun used in the shooting belonged to Davis Sr.

He would not say whether the father had brought the gun to campus when picking up his son, but noted that Davis Jr. was seen on video in the dorm's parking lot with the gun before going into the building where his parents were shot.

The university was put into lockdown after the shooting and advised all students to seek shelter in a message via Twitter. A robocall also went out to people on the campus, telling them a suspect was on the loose.

Central Michigan Police Lt. Larry Klaus said the suspect was in contact with police Thursday night, in response to a possible drug overdose. Davis was taken to a hospital and released Friday morning.

Central Michigan University, which is located about 155 miles northwest of Detroit in Michigan, has over 20,000 students. Enditem