Army ROTC students at Old Dominion University have shared their firsthand account of a deadly campus shooting, describing in vivid detail how their instructor gave his life to protect them and how they fought back against the gunman who targeted their program.
The cadets released a 17-minute video on Wednesday detailing the March 12 attack at the Norfolk campus, where Lt. Col. Brandon Shah threw himself at the shooter to shield his students from harm.
According to Cadet Jah-Ire Urtarte, Shah’s heroic actions prevented further casualties that day.
“If he didn’t lunge at him, you know, I wouldn’t be here right now,” Urtarte explained. “There’s a possibility he could’ve turned his gun and I could’ve been next.”
The attacker, Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, an Army National Guard veteran, also perished in the incident. Jalloh had previously admitted guilt in 2016 for trying to assist the Islamic State and served 11 years behind bars. He was under supervised release when the attack occurred.
According to the cadets’ testimony, Jalloh entered their classroom and anxiously inquired whether it was an ROTC session. After receiving confirmation, witnesses say he drew a handgun from his waistband, yelled ‘Allahu akbar,’ and opened fire at Shah.
Students scrambled for safety as Shah wrestled with the gunman. Cadet Louis Ancheta described drawing his pocket knife and advancing toward the struggle, taking a bullet to his chest in the process.
“It really didn’t feel like it hit me,” Ancheta recalled, gesturing toward his sternum. “It felt like a graze. After that, I’m like, ‘I can keep on going.’”
Once Shah managed to turn the attacker around, Ancheta deployed the folding tactical blade that most cadets routinely carry.
“So, I just go in there, just start stabbing him,” he recounted. “As I’m stabbing, other cadets jump in.”
Cadet Jeremy Rawlinson also drew his knife to help neutralize the danger.
Even with multiple students restraining him, Jalloh maintained control of his weapon. Cadet Wesley Myers focused on disarming him, forcing his fingers between the gunman’s grip and the pistol to wrestle it away and remove the remaining bullet.
Once they had secured the weapon, the cadets immediately shifted to treating the injured. Cadet Samuel Reineberg discovered a gunshot wound on Shah’s upper right leg, while Rawlinson provided his belt to create a tourniquet.
“On an instant, we switched over to doing combat care,” Rawlinson explained.
Myers attended to Ancheta’s injuries.
“It’s different when it’s not a mannequin and it’s your friend,” Myers reflected. “So, myself and another cadet pull him to the side and lay him on his back and begin performing first aid.”
Ancheta mentioned asking his fellow cadets to contact his mother during the ordeal.
During his recovery, Ancheta was honored with the Purple Heart, joining several other cadets who received recognition for their courageous response.
The students credited Shah with both protecting them and preparing them for such a crisis through his training.
“So, he got to see all the training that he and the rest of Cadre had been giving us for the past years, he got to see us instantly do that in action,” Rawlinson noted. “He got see right then and there, like, hey, these guys didn’t panic. They immediately switched over.”
According to his university profile, Shah was himself an ODU ROTC graduate who returned to lead the program in 2022. During his military service, Shah piloted helicopters on missions across Iraq, Afghanistan and Eastern Europe.
Just two days prior to the shooting, Shah had instructed cadets to avoid wearing their military uniforms on campus for security reasons, another cadet had previously revealed to The Associated Press.
“Because of all the situation that’s happening with Iran and all of that stuff in the Middle East,” explained Cadet Brandon Rebolledo, who was in the adjacent ROTC facility during the attack. “To make sure that we did not become a target and to make sure that we were keeping a low profile.”
The cadets maintain that Shah was the true hero of that tragic day.
“So, he has a saying: Be bold, be quick, be gone,’” Rawlinson shared.
Cadet Oshea Bego added: “Col. Shah really set that example for what it means, not just as a warrior, leader and soldier, but also just as a human being.”
