He 'Cracked' Mass Shooting Case 'Wide Open,' But Will He Get $50K Reward?

PROVIDENCE, RI — A man identified by police only as "John" was the key to "cracking" the mystery of the Brown University mass shooting "wide open," but will he receive the $50,000 reward dangled by the FBI for information on the gunman?

"In keeping with our standard practice, the FBI does not disclose whether a reward has been paid or to whom," FBI spokeswoman Kristen Setera said in an email when asked if the feds were going to pay up.

Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha acknowledged John was critical to identifying Claudio Neves Valente, a 48-year-old former Brown student and Portugese national living in Miami, as the man police say fired at least 44 shots in the Barus & Holley engineering and physics building, killing two and wounding eight others.

Related: FBI Offers $50K Reward For Info On Brown University Killer

Valente was also linked to the shooting death of Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nuno Loureiro, who was found mortally wounded in his Brookline home Monday, with the feds calling the connection a certainty.

"U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, FBI, and ATF Announce Death of the Brown University and MIT Professor Shooter," read a post on the U.S. Attorney's Office District of New Hampshire page.

Related: MIT Professor's Shooting: Latest Details In The Case After Suspect Found Dead

"He blew this case right open. He blew it open," Neronha said.

"He cracked it," Neronha said. "And that person led us to the car, which led us to the name, which led us to the photographs of that individual renting the car, which matched the clothing of our shooter here in Providence, that matched the satchel that we see here in Providence."

John — who came face to face with Neves Valente in a Barus & Holley bathroom about two hours before the 4 p.m. Saturday shooting — first posted about his knowledge of the suspected killer on Reddit three days after the gun attack.

Related: Brown University Suspected Mass Shooter Found Dead By Suicide In NH Storage Unit

"I'm dead serious. The police need to look into a grey Nissan with Florida plates, possibly a rental," the Reddit post said, going on to tell how he watched the suspect unlock the car with a fob before "something prompted him to back away," lock it again and circle the block.

The night after posting to Reddit — four days after the deadly shooting — John approached two police officers on Meeting Street outside the Brown University Alumni Hall building and told them he wanted to share what he knew about the suspicious character he encountered in the bathroom, then followed out to the parking lot.

"John remained on that block and observed the Suspect looping back to that area, then switching directions every time they saw each other," according to an affidavit and arrest warrant. "John described this pattern as a 'game of cat and mouse' between himself and the Suspect."

John and the "Suspect" ran into each other on George Street, and the "Suspect" ran off in the "opposite direction" with John chasing after and passing him, according to the affidavit.

Related: Providence Police Release Enhanced Image Of 2nd Person Of Interest In Brown University Mass Shooting

"John then turned to face the Suspect," the affidavit said.

"John estimates they were standing approximately two feet away from each other," the affidavit said. "John asked the Suspect, 'Your car is back there, why are you circling the block?' The Suspect responded, 'I don't know you from nobody.' The suspect then repeatedly asked, 'Why are you harassing me?'"

When shown photos of the suspect vehicle, John told officers, "Holy (expletive). That might be it," according to the affidavit and arrest warrant, and also recognized elements from a photograph of Valente, who was masked during their encounter.

Despite the FBI's "standard practice" of withholding whether a reward was paid or who it may have been paid to, FBI Boston Special Agent in Charge Ted Docks said he believes John should get at least a cut of the money.

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"You know, I will say, in this particular situation, that individual will likely get at least some aspect of that reward," Docks said. "We've had a lot of other tips, I will tell you as well that have come in from the public."

The arrest warrant and affidavit describing the case includes no mention of other tips from the public.

One complication is that the reward was contingent on the tipster's information must lead to the arrest and conviction of the shooter, and Valente eluded both arrest and prosecution, as he was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a Salem, New Hampshire, storage unit Thursday night.

Related: Brown University Person Of Interest Cased Building Hours Before Mass Shooting: Chief

If the case had gone to trial, John would have been a star witness, according to Neronha.

"His testimony, had we needed it, would not only have been credible, it would have been persuasive. He was as outstanding a witness as I've seen, and he deserves a lot of credit," the attorney general said.

"That person deserves a tremendous amount of credit," Neronha said. "I don't know whether he's going to get the reward or not, but if I had a vote, he would."