Michigan State gunman carried note threatening New Jersey schools -police

Police officers surround a scene where the suspect was located as they respond to a shooting at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, U.S., February 14, 2023. REUTERS/Dieu-Nalio Chery

EAST LANSING, Mich. (Reuters) - The gunman who killed three Michigan State University students and wounded five others before taking his own life had a history of mental illness and carried a note in his pocket indicating a threat to two New Jersey schools, police said on Monday.

The disclosure of an apparent New Jersey connection to the suspect, 43-year-old Anthony Dwayne McRae, came as investigators sought clues to what prompted him to open fire Monday night on the MSU campus in East Lansing, about 90 miles west of Detroit.