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Chief: Slain MIT officer was dedicated, well liked

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Sean Collier had only worked at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for about a year. But he was already popular with his colleagues in the campus police department, as well as with students, often joining them on hiking and skiing trips.

Authorities say the 26-year-old Collier was shot and killed by the Boston Marathon bombing suspects.

MIT says Collier was a Wilmington native and Somerville resident who had worked at MIT since January 2012. Before that, he was a civilian employee of the Somerville Police Department.

MIT Chief John DiFava says Collier was a dedicated officer, liked by his colleagues and the MIT community.

MIT President L. Rafael Reif says Collier’s loss is “deeply painful.”

Collier was found shot several times in his vehicle at about 10:30 p.m. Thursday.

Collier and Tamerlan Tsarnaev may have crossed paths in the past.

Bob Covino, who co-founded the Somerville Boxing Club, says 26-year-old bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev trained at the gym several years ago. Covino says the MIT officer slain by the bombing suspects, Collier, began volunteering at the gym seven or eight months ago.

Covino says it’s very unlikely that the two men crossed paths at the gym, because he hasn’t seen Tsarnaev for several years and Collier only came over recently.

Covino says Collier had been helping teach the younger boxers. The officer also set up a website for the gym.