Crime
Nightclub Shooting in Amarillo Leaves One Dead, Several Injured, Three Suspects in Custody
Authorities recovered a firearm, multiple shell casings, and additional evidence believed to be connected to the shooting.
Amarillo, TX โ The Amarillo Police Department is investigating a deadly nightclub shooting that occurred in the early hours of January 26, 2025.
Authorities received multiple 911 calls at approximately 2:05 a.m., reporting gunfire in the 700 block of South Polk Street.
According to eyewitness accounts, a vehicle approached the entrance of a nightclub, where an unidentified individual exited and opened fire into a large crowd with a rifle.
After discharging multiple rounds, the suspect returned to the vehicle and fled the scene.
A vigilant citizen who witnessed the shooting followed the suspect’s vehicle and provided real-time location updates to 911 dispatchers.
Thanks to the individual’s efforts, Randall County Sheriff’s deputies were able to locate and intercept the suspect’s vehicle near Hillside Road and Bell Street.
Three individuals were taken into custody and transported to the Amarillo Police Department’s Homicide Division for further questioning.
Investigators confirmed that a total of nine individuals sustained gunshot wounds during the attack.
Responding Amarillo police officers immediately rendered life-saving aid, and emergency personnel from Amarillo Fire Department and AMR paramedics provided additional medical assistance.
Six victims were transported to two local hospitals, while three others arrived at medical facilities via private transportation.
Tragically, one victim, identified as 25-year-old John Love Louima, succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
His next of kin have been notified. The remaining victims are currently receiving treatment for varying degrees of injuries.
The suspected gunman has been identified as Robert Kenney Knox, 23, of Amarillo. The driver of the getaway vehicle was identified as Nahryah Hilesta Ines Hayes, 21, also of Amarillo. A third suspect, a passenger in the vehicle, was identified as Britt Brinson Cave, 22.
Knox and Hayes have been charged with:
- Murder
- Eight counts of deadly conduct/discharge of a firearm
They have been booked into the Potter County Detention Center.
Cave has been charged with public intoxication and is being held at the Randall County Detention Center.
Authorities recovered a firearm, multiple shell casings, and additional evidence believed to be connected to the shooting.
Preliminary findings suggest that the shooting stemmed from an earlier altercation inside the nightclub. Investigators believe the suspects left the premises following the dispute but later returned and carried out the attack.
The Amarillo Police Department’s Homicide Unit continues to investigate and urges anyone with information, including video footage from the scene, to come forward. Witnesses can contact detectives at 806-378-9468.
Authorities are working diligently to piece together the events leading up to the shooting and ensure justice is served.
Crime
Mustapha Kharbouch Now-Deleted 2024 Manifesto Published in Institute for Palestine Studies Recovered
Brown University has removed multiple online references to student activist Mustapha Kharbouch in the days following a deadly campus shooting, a move that has drawn public attention amid heightened online speculationโdespite law enforcement officials confirming that no suspects or persons of interest have been identified in the investigation.
Archived versions of Brown University webpages show that Kharbouch, a first-year student at the time, was previously listed in several university-affiliated roles, including as a student assistant and Cultural Programming Coordinator connected to the Global Brown Center.
His academic interests were described as focusing on International and Public Affairs and Anthropology, with involvement in Middle Eastโfocused academic, cultural, and student programming.
Those pages are no longer accessible, and Kharbouchโs social media accounts have also been deactivated.
A verified buyer from the United States with the name “Mustapha K.” reviewed a 9MM muzzle brake through the Wing Tactical website on December 29th, 2024 โ the same caliber used in the Brown shooting.
There are approximately a few hundred people in the entire United States with that first name + last initial combination.
University officials have not issued a public explanation for the removal of the online profiles.
The changes occurred as online speculation intensified in the immediate aftermath of the shooting, with social media users circulating screenshots of archived university pages and past writings associated with Kharbouch.
Among the materials resurfaced by online users was a 2024 essay authored by Kharbouch and published by the Institute for Palestine Studies as part of a special student essay series titled Genocide in Gaza: Student Essays โ Brown University Encampment 2024.
The essay, titled โI Hear the Voice of My Ancestors Calling: From the Camps to the Campus,โ was published on August 13, 2024, months before the shooting. The piece is a first-person reflective essay examining Palestinian identity, intergenerational memory, student activism, and questions of hope amid displacement, war, and protest.
The article includes poetic excerpts adapted from โAncestors Song,โ a chant popularized during student-led Palestine solidarity actions at Brown University, and documents Kharbouchโs participation in campus organizing efforts, including sit-ins, hunger strikes, rallies, and the Brown Gaza Solidarity Encampment.
The essay situates these experiences within a broader discussion of decolonial thought, feminist theory, and Palestinian history, including reflections on the 1948 Nakba and the authorโs family history as a third-generation stateless Palestinian refugee raised in Lebanon.
The content of the essay is ideological, autobiographical, and academic in nature.
There is no reference to violence on campus, nor any indication of intent or planning related to criminal activity.
The Institute for Palestine Studies has not issued any statement suggesting the piece is under review or connected to the shooting.
Despite widespread online conjecture, law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and Providence Police, have not named Mustapha Kharbouch as a suspect or person of interest, and have publicly stated that there is no evidence linking him to the shooting.
Investigators have emphasized that the case remains active and that conclusions are being guided strictly by verified evidence.
Authorities have cautioned against drawing inferences from online speculation, warning that unsubstantiated claims can compromise investigations and cause undue harm to individuals not implicated by facts.
Media analysts and campus observers have suggested that Brown Universityโs decision to remove online references may have been taken as a protective or precautionary measure, particularly as misinformation and harassment proliferated across social media platforms following the attack.
Similar actions have been taken by institutions in other high-profile incidents to limit doxxing, targeted harassment, or the misinterpretation of publicly available biographical information during periods of heightened tension.
Brown University has not confirmed whether the removals were temporary, administrative, or safety-related in nature.
Authorities continue to urge the public to rely on confirmed information released by law enforcement and to avoid amplifying unverified narratives.
As of the most recent update, no arrests have been announced, no individuals have been publicly identified as suspects, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with credible information related to the shooting has been asked to contact investigators directly.