WASHINGTON-
Police have arrested a gunman in the killing of three people in the town of Chapel Hill in North Carolina, US news reports said.
The shooter, identified as Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, was being held in Durham County Jail on three counts of first-degree murder, the Chapel Hill News and Observer newspaper and other news outlets said.
It said the victims were identified as Chapel Hill residents Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, his wife Yusor Abu-Salha, 21; and her sister, Razan Abu-Salha, 19, of Raleigh.
Hicks turned himself in, news reports said.
Chapel Hill is home to a campus of the University of North Carolina.
Local reports said Deah Barakat was a second-year student in dentistry and Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha was planning to begin her dental studies in the fall.
Abu-Salha was a student at North Carolina State University, according to the UNC university newspaper, the Daily Tar Heel.
Police in Chapel Hill have not said what the motive of the shooting was.
Police were not immediately available for comment.
Their website released a statement confirming the three deaths and saying the department is “questioning a person of interest in the crime and has reason to believe that there is no ongoing threat to the public.
The shooting has been met with an outpouring of anger on social media, where people claimed they had been “murdered execution style”.
Following a lack of coverage in US or international media, a hashtag #Muslimlivesmatter started on Twitter;
3 Muslim college students killed in cold blood. No media attention or outrage #MuslimLivesMatter #ChapelHillShooting pic.twitter.com/FuCN3XAkA3
— Diana (@lunarnomad) February 11, 2015
If it were a Muslim who shot 3 innocent christians it’ll be on CNN within minutes but I guess society only works one way #MuslimLivesMatter
— Meech Uchiha (@KINGMEECH35) February 11, 2015
MUSLIM LIVES MATTER. THIS WILL NOT BE THROWN UNDER THE RUG BY WHITE MEDIA. MUSLIM. LIVES. MATTER. #MuslimLivesMatter
— mango baby (@neuroluv) February 11, 2015
Mainstream media is not reporting it. Let’s ask about this. Let’s talk about it. Don’t let them sweep it under the rug. #MuslimLivesMatter
— Ijeoma Oluo (@IjeomaOluo) February 11, 2015
On @CNN even robot pets are more important than minority lives. #ChapelHillShooting #MuslimLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/GIeUG4QDEk
— Damiyr Andre (@KingDamiyr) February 11, 2015