Las Vegas, Nevada – A tragic incident unfolded at the University of Nevada Las Vegas in December, where three faculty members lost their lives at the hands of a former professor turned mass shooter. The deadly attack, carried out by Anthony Polito, was fueled by a deadly combination of oxycodone and medication for erectile dysfunction found in his system during the assault.
According to a coroner’s report, Polito, who had been unsuccessful in obtaining a professorship at the university, had high levels of oxycodone and tadalafil, a drug used to treat erectile dysfunction, in his system at the time of the shooting. The report detailed that Polito suffered multiple gunshot wounds as a result of a confrontation with law enforcement following the incident, ultimately leading to his death.
Prior to the tragic events at UNLV, Polito had a history of teaching at East Carolina University in North Carolina, where allegations of inappropriate behavior towards students surfaced. Despite resigning from his position in 2017, Polito continued to face rejection from UNLV on multiple occasions as he sought employment at the institution.
The targeted attack claimed the lives of three beloved professors at the Lee Business School and the College of Liberal Arts, leaving a lasting impact on the university community. The discovery of a list of additional targets on Polito’s person further heightened the gravity of the situation, indicating a potentially larger scale of violence had law enforcement not intervened promptly.
Furthermore, disturbing accounts from former students shed light on Polito’s history of inappropriate behavior, illustrating a pattern of misconduct that went unchecked for some time. The incident at UNLV underscored the importance of addressing red flags and taking necessary actions to prevent such tragedies from occurring in educational settings.
As the community grapples with the aftermath of the tragedy, it serves as a stark reminder of the critical need for vigilance and preventative measures to safeguard against acts of violence in academic institutions. The impact of such events reverberates far beyond campus grounds, prompting discussions on mental health, campus safety, and the responsibility of educational institutions to ensure the well-being of their students and faculty.