Georgia Tech president: Unrest mainly caused by ‘outside agitators’

Georgia Tech president Bud Peterson.

Georgia Tech president Bud Peterson.

Georgia Tech president G.P. "Bud" Peterson said "outside agitators" were mainly to blame for the unrest that took place on campus Monday night.

Peterson said in a letter to students, faculty and alumni Tuesday that a vigil held for a student shot and killed a Tech police officer Saturday night was disrupted “by several dozen others intent on creating a disturbance and inciting violence. We believe many of them were not part of our Georgia Tech community, but rather outside agitators intent on disrupting the event.”

Peterson added they did not honor the memory of the student who was killed, Scout Schultz, with their actions.

A police vehicle was set ablaze and an officer was hurt during the melee. Three arrests were made. Some Tech students organized a campus clean-up Tuesday.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is investigating the shooting of Schultz, 21, an engineering student from Gwinnett County. Schultz's parents have questioned why the unidentified officer shot Schultz. An attorney representing the family said a civil lawsuit will likely be filed.

Tech has referred questions about the shooting to the GBI. Peterson asked in his letter for everyone “not to draw conclusions too quickly” about the incident.