Brown shooting suspect: gruelling academic climate may have taken mental toll, say ex-classmates

"Valente was described as brilliant and competitive, but willing to help his colleagues out. He finished top of his class, with an average grade of 19 out of 20, an unusually high score for Tecnico. Loureiro, who was said to be an excellent student but more easygoing than Valente, finished with an average grade of 16 out of 20. Classmates say that, at the time, the two men appeared socially well adjusted."

"Nuno Morais, 48, now a researcher at the Gulbenkian Institute for Molecular Medicine in Lisbon, said he and his fellow classmates, shaken by the news of Loureiro's killing, had been racking their brains for any signs that something was wrong. Having known Claudio and having had a good relationship with him, we can't find any other explanation than a serious mental health problem exacerbated by resentment for not having achieved the academic career he dreamed of, he said."

Claudio Valente, the suspected gunman, and Nuno FG Loureiro, one of the victims, both graduated from the University of Lisbon's Tecnico engineering school in 2000. Classmates describe Tecnico's academic environment as emotionally gruelling. Valente was described as brilliant, competitive, and helpful, finishing top of his class with a 19/20 average. Loureiro was an excellent but more easygoing student with a 16/20 average. Classmates recall both appearing socially well adjusted at the time. Valente later enrolled in a Brown University physics doctoral program but dropped out in early 2001 and returned to Portugal to work as a programmer. Former classmates suspect serious mental-health problems and resentment over unmet academic career expectations.

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