FSU dining worker named as first victim of campus shooting (2025)

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A dining room worker at Florida State University has been identified as one of the victims of Thursdays shooting.

Robert Morales was shot dead on the Tallahassee campus after 20-year-old student Phoenix Ikner opened fire.

One other as-yet unidentified victim was also killed, with cops saying neither person murdered was a student at FSU.

In a post to X, his older brother Ricardo said: 'Today we lost my younger brother. He was one of the victims killed at FSU.

'He loved his job at FSU and his beautiful Wife and Daughter. I’m glad you were in my Life.'

According to his LinkedIn profile, Morales had worked at the university as a dining coordinator for over nine years.

In a statement, his employer Aramark said: 'We are heartbroken to confirm that an Aramark employee was among those killed at FSU yesterday in that senseless act of violence.

'We are absolutely shaken by the news and our deepest sympathies are with the family and our entire Aramark community.'

Six others were also injured in the shooting, with two of those expected to be discharged from Tallahassee Memorial hospital at some point on Friday.

Three other victims' conditions are said to be improving, a spokesperson said, while another remained 'in fair condition'.

The campus was locked down as gunfire erupted, with students ordered to shelter in place as first responders swarmed the site moments after the lunchtime shootings.

Ikner is the son of a sheriff's deputy and had used her gun in his rampage, which killed 2 people and injured six others.

Ikner is currently in custody in hospital, after he wasshot by officers at the scene.

Witnesses spoke of chaos as people began running through the sprawling campus as shots rang out near the student union.

'Everyone just started running out of the student union,' a witness named Wayne told local news station WCTV.

'About a minute later, we heard about eight to 10 gunshots', hesaid he saw one man who appeared to have been shot in the midsection.

He added: 'The whole entire thing was just surreal. I just couldn't believe what I was seeing. Everything was really quiet, then all chaotic.

Former classmates of Ikner have since said that heheld 'white supremacist' beliefs and 'espoused far right rhetoric'.

Speaking to NBC after the shooting, a student who was once part of a 'political round table' with Ikner revealed he harbored white supremacist views.

'Basically our only rule was no Nazis — colloquially speaking — and he espoused so much white supremacist rhetoric and far right rhetoric as well,' Reid Seybold said.

Seybold, who was president of the club, said he had to kick Ikner out of the group due to his beliefs and rhetoric.

Officials said his mother is Leon County Sheriff's Deputy Jessica Ikner, noting that he had access to one of her weapons which was then found at the scene.

Leon County Sheriff McNeil said at a press conference Thursday the gunmanwas a member of the department's youth set-up and was involved in training programs.

Ikner was described as 'steeped in the Leon County Sheriff's Office family.'

Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell said the gun was previously used by his mother for law enforcement, but was her private handgun at the time of the shooting, because deputies 'are allowed to purchase the handgun they used prior.'

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