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Investigation opened into cop who killed Georgia Tech student

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced Tuesday that Tyler Beck, the Georgia Tech police officer who shot and killed Georgia Tech student Scout Schultz this weekend, is now under investigation for use of force.

The announcement came hours after Georgia Tech’s campus erupted into sudden violence following the end of of a vigil in honor of Schultz, the 21-year-old leader of a campus LGBTQ group. About 50 protesters left the vigil and headed toward campus police headquarters, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported, where they set a police car on fire.

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Three people were later arrested. All are now expected to appear Wednesday morning for their first hearings for various charges, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

“The events of the past few days have been incredibly difficult and challenging for the entire Georgia Tech community,” G.P. “Bud” Peterson, Georgia Tech president, wrote in an open letter Tuesday. While Peterson celebrated Schultz and the vigil organized in Schultz’s honor, he blamed “outside agitators” “intent on creating a disturbance and inciting violence.” (The school later clarified that one of the people arrested during the protests is a current Georgia Tech student.)

“Georgia Tech has gained national attention as a result of this incident,” Peterson cautioned, “and while today’s communications technologies provide us with almost instantaneous coverage, we must rely on professional investigation and evaluation, and not draw conclusions too quickly.”

Beck shot Scout Schultz on Saturday night, after Schultz called campus police to report that an armed man was on campus. Videos of the shooting appear to show Beck opening fire on Schultz as Schultz approached officers holding a multi-purpose tool that included a blade. Schultz can be heard saying, “Shoot me.”

The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that the tool was not extended and Schultz was shot from a distance of about 20 feet away.

Three suicide notes were later found in Schultz’s room, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

“Why did you have to shoot?” Scout’s father, Bill Schultz, said at a press conference Monday. “That’s the only question that matters right now.”

Beck is now on paid leave. The attorney for the Schultz family tweeted Tuesday that “the officer had only had a year on duty and no crisis intervention training.”

A spokesperson for Georgia Tech declined to speak with VICE News about its crisis intervention training for its police officers, but said the school was working on providing a more better explanation on its training requirements.