The Murfreesboro Police Department has apprehended an unidentified male who allegedly shot another male in the thumb during an altercation near the Keathley University Center moments before noon Monday.

The university was placed on lockdown after the gunshot rang out due to an argument that occurred between the two males. The victim sustained a minor hand injury, and police blocked off all areas around the Business and Aerospace Building where they suspected the alleged shooter had fled.

“We have the scene secured,” said Kyle Evans, deputy spokesperson for the Murfreesboro Police Department. “[The] victim received a minor gunshot wound to the hand.”

The victim received immediate medical attention as he gave his statement, which led to finding the suspect, Evans said.

“We were able to secure the victim, get him all of the medical attention he needs while getting his statement and getting that out to both MTSU [campus police] and Murfreesboro police, as well as the Rutherford County [Sheriff’s Department],” Evans said. “With that information, we were able to find the suspect and get him into custody without anybody else getting hurt.

Evans said there are conflicting reports on how many shots were fired.

“We know for sure at least one shot was fired, but we’re investigating how many were actually fired,” Evans said.

Many students heard the gunfire but few saw it.

“‘He just f***ing shot my thumb,” said Joanna Branson, a student eyewitness, quoting the victim after he was shot.

Branson and Heidi O’Brien sat on a bench outside the KUC and saw the argument between the two males taking place right in front of them.

“We were 10 feet away from them,” Branson said. “We heard the guys yelling – they were just cursing a lot.”

The argument escalated and the suspect pulled out a semi-automatic handgun and fired at the victim hitting a thumb, Branson said.

“Somehow he shot him on the tip of his thumb,” Branson said.

Bethany Carlson, a student who saw the weapon, said she was sitting on the outside of the Quad and heard the victim shouting at the suspect after he was shot.

“‘Come on, you want to shoot me, I’m here,'” Carlson said, quoting the victim.

The gun used looked like a child’s toy, Carlson said.

“It looked like a toy gun,” Carlson said. “It was a shiny little revolver.”

Natalie Lewis, a student eyewitness, said she saw the suspect flee the scene while concealing the weapon.

“I heard the pop, but nobody knew what was going on because they all just stood there, ” Lewis said. “I saw the gleam of the gun as [the suspect] put it in his bag.”

Lewis said she saw the suspect casually walk toward the BAS, into the building, and out of sight.

“So he went into the BAS with a loaded gun,” Branson said.

O’Brien said the victim chased after the suspect after he was shot.

“The [victim] took his overshirt off and went [after] him,” O’Brien said.

Branson and O’Brien said they are stunned that they saw the shooting.

“I’m kind of shocked he got shot in front of us,” O’Brien said.

Police were notified immediately of the shooting, Evans said, adding this was a very serious matter, but police are highly trained for situations like this.

“Anytime you have somebody that’s armed with a handgun in a very crowded, populated area, it’s a very serious situation,” Evans said. “It’s something that we train for on a daily basis, our SWAT team and MTSU [campus] police had a very coordinated response, we initiated our Code Red.”

Police are researching the relationship between the two males to conclude why this happened.

“We believe there was some initial type of altercation in which started this chain of events,” Evans said. “We’re going to look into exactly what kind of relationship did exist and what led up to the shooting.”

Police do not know if the suspect is a student, and it was not clear if the victim was a student either.

“We don’t know right now [if the suspect is a student], just very preliminary stages, he was walking out with other students,” Evans said.

One student said that his Valentine’s Day is over.

“I’m going home,” said Justin Bingham, a senior majoring in digital animation. “Happy Valentine’s Day – I’m going home.”