KILLED ON FACEBOOK
Psycho guns down 74-year-old innocent Films cold-blooded slay, uploads to site Ohio manhunt stretches to N.Y.
WITH A PHONE in one hand and a gun in the other, a psycho approached a random elderly man in Cleveland and shot him dead, filming the callous killing he then posted on Facebook.
Police said Steve Stephens shot 74-yearold Robert Godwin in the city’s Glenville neighborhood at 2 p.m. and shortly afterward uploaded the video with the title “Easter day slaughter.”
Stephens said in subsequent videos that the sick killing was an act of revenge directed at his girlfriend, Joy Lane.
Filmed from the shooter’s perspective and allegedly posted to Facebook by the 37-year-old Stephens under his account “Stevie Steve,” the footage shows the gunman walking up to Godwin and asking, “Can you say ‘Joy Lane’? ” “Joy Lane,” Godwin replies. “She’s the reason why all of this is about to happen to you,” the shooter says.
The gunman then asks, “How old are you?” before firing once, striking the helpless man in the head as he tries to protect himself with a white plastic shopping bag.
The shooter walks away from the bloody body, gets into a vehicle and leaves.
The video was removed from Facebook after three hours, and Stephens’ Facebook page was also deactivated — but not before videos he filmed of himself blaming others for the bloodshed began circulating online.
“I shamed myself. I snapped dog, I just snapped . . . . I killed 13 mother f-kers man. I’m going to keep killing until they catch me, f--- it,” he said.
Police, on an urgent manhunt to find Stephens, were searching vacant homes in the area for any additional victims, according to Cleveland.com. They had yet to find additional victims.
Authorities said Stephens was last seen in a white Ford Fusion, and that residents of Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana and Michigan should be on the alert for the fugitive killer. They did not elaborate on why he might choose to hide out in New York or the other states.
In videos, Stephens whined about his girlfriend.
“The love of my life . . . . We’ve been together three years. We were supposed to get married,” he said.
“She’s the reason why what’s happened today.”
He alluded to developing a gambling problem during the strained relationship and “losing everything.”
Lane could not be reached, but Cleveland.com reported she was in protective custody and cooperating with police.
In a text to CBS News, she said she prayed for the victim and his family and presented another side of Stephens.
“Steve really is a nice guy ... he is generous with everyone he knows. He was kind and loving to me and my children. This is a very difficult time for me and my family,” she wrote.
Stephens mother, Maggie Green, told CNN that he told her he was killing people because he was “mad with his girlfriend.” She said she had urged him to stop shooting people.
Police Chief Calvin Williams called the shooting “senseless.”
“If Steve has an issue, then he needs to talk to some folks to get that resolved,” Williams said, suggesting the wanted man contact local clergy and avoid more bloodshed.
He cautioned that Stephens, wanted for a charge of aggravated murder, was armed and dangerous.
On Facebook, he said he was a caseworker for the behavioral health agency Beech Brook, even flashing the ID card he wore around his neck during the shooting.
A tweet from Stephens’ family said they had disowned him.
“We absolutely do not condone this type of behavior and this atrocity, therefore we do not consider Steve a part of this family,” the family said.
Robert Godwin Jr. told local news station WOIO he was devastated by the murder of his dad, a father of nine.
“He was a good guy. He would give you the shirt off his back,” he said. “I’m not just saying that for these cameras . . . . This man, right here, was a good man and I hate that he’s gone.”
Another relative of Godwin’s could only repeat, “It feels like my heart is going to stop.”
Facebook, which faced criticism for not removing the gruesome video faster, condemned the shooting.
“This is a horrific crime, and we do not allow this kind of content on Facebook,” a spokesman said.
“We work hard to keep a safe environment on Facebook, and are in touch with law enforcement in emergencies when there are direct threats to physical safety.”