The Bucknell University student death, explained

A tense 48 hours at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, PA., saw an active shooter alert on Friday, March 29, 2024, which turned out to be a false alarm, and the discovery of a dead student’s body at the Gamma Delta Fraternity on the Bucknell campus the next day.

At around 1:45 p.m., Saturday, March 30, Lewisburg police responded to an emergency call from the fraternity, according to The Tribune-Democrat. Less than a day after the active shooter alert, Bucknell staff and students received another notification that a death investigation was underway. There was no threat to the campus community, the authorities said.

There were no suspicious circumstances

In the death investigation alert, authorities also said there were no suspicious circumstances related to how the student died. The student was later identified as 22-year-old Christian Samay, who was reportedly set to graduate from Bucknell University in the Spring. To date, no specific cause of death has been provided, and Samay’s body will be autopsied.

In a statement announcing Samay’s death, Bucknell University President John C. Bravman said the incident was unrelated to the active shooter hoax. “It is with a heavy heart that I share the news of the death of a Bucknell student on campus today. Together we mourn the passing of Christian Samay ’24. This is an unspeakable loss for the Bucknell community,” Bravman’s comment added.

Bravman also said counseling services and support resources were available to Bucknell students in the aftermath of Samay’s death. The Daily Item reported that classes were canceled on Monday, April 1, to allow Bucknell students time to grieve.