0 James Holmes - Colorado shootings suspect

The man suspected of shooting 70 people in a sold-out movie theater was a neuroscience graduate student who decked himself out in full-body armor for the attack, dyed his hair red and told police he is the Batman villain known as "The Joker."

James Eagan Holmes, the suspect in the Colorado shooting rampage, is described as a quiet, standoffish, graduate student from San Diego who recently dropped out of a doctoral program at the University of Colorado medical school, where he had done research.

He graduated with honors from the University of California-Riverside two years ago.

A profile of the 24-year-old suspect is beginning to emerge hours after a gunman opened fire in a crowded movie theater showing the new Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises, killing 12 people, including a 6-year-old girl. Police say 59 others were wounded or injured by tear gas the gunman set off before opening fire.

Update at 4:15 p.m. ET: Holmes was armed with an AR-15 assault rifle, a 12-gauge shotgun and a Glock .40-caliber handgun, said Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates. A .40-caliber handgun was found in his car, which was parked just outside the rear entrance to the cinema.
He bought a ticket to the midnight show, the first for the latest Batman movie, and entered the theater with the crowd, a U.S. law enforcement official tells the Associated Press. Holmes then allegedly propped open an exit door after the movie started, donned protective gear and started shooting. Another source tells AP the assault rifle was equipped with a high-capacity, drum-style ammunition clip.


Update at 3:27 p.m. ET: The University of California-Riverside confirms that James Eagan Holmes graduated with honors in spring 2010 with a B.S. degree in neuroscience.
In a statement, Chancellor Timothy White says, "On behalf of the entire UCR community, I extend our deepest sympathy to the victims, their families and all of those impacted by this tragedy. "



The suspect, dressed in black and wearing a protective vest, was arrested by police near his car behind the movie theater during a midnight showing of the Batman film. They seized an assault rifle, shotgun and two pistols at the scene, the Associated Press reports.
"He did not resist. He did not put up a fight," says Aurora police spokesman Frank Fania.
New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, who was in touch with Colorado authorities, said the gunman had dyed his hair red and called himself "The Joker," referring to Batman's arch-nemesis.
The suspect recently moved into an apartment about 4 miles from the theater where the shootings took place. It is in view of Children's Hospital, where some victims were taken.
The suspect allegedly told authorities there were explosives at his third-floor apartment, which was quickly surrounded by police.


Aurora Deputy Fire Chief Chris Henderson says the apartment is "extensively" booby-trapped, with numerous liter bottles connected with wires or cord arranged in the front room, along with other unknown devices or items, USA TODAY's Trevor Hughes reports.
Police evacuated several nearby buildings as bomb squads prepared to send a robot into the apartment.
The Denver Post quotes a pharmacy student living in the apartment building as saying Holmes kept to himself and would not even respond to anyone who tried to say "hello."
ABC News reports that it spoke to a woman in San Diego who identified herself as Holmes' mother. The woman immediately expressed concern that her son might be involved in the shootings in Colorado.