USA TODAY International Edition
POLICE: ACCUSED FACEBOOK KILLER FOUND DEAD
After brief pursuit, suspect fatally shoots himself in Penn.
Steve Stephens, the murder suspect who posted a video on Facebook of a brutal killing in Cleveland, fatally shot himself Tuesday in Pennsylvania, State Police said.
“Steve Stephens was spotted this morning by PSP members in Erie County,” Pennsylvania State Police tweeted. “After a brief pursuit, Stephens shot and killed himself.”
Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams said police in Pennsylvania received a tip just after 11 a. m. ET that Stephens’ vehicle was seen in a McDonald’s parking lot near the city of Erie. Williams said Stephens fled in his vehicle but was stopped after a short pursuit.
“Steve Stephens then took his own life,” Williams said.
Williams said authorities had received more than 400 tips in the hunt for Stephens since police say he fatally shot Robert Godwin, 74, on Easter Sunday. Williams said the search was conducted nationwide, with tips coming in from as far away as Texas. Sightings had been reported in Pennsylvania.
Erie County, Pa., is about 90 miles northeast of Cleveland. Williams said it was not clear where Stephens was between the time of the shooting and the time his car was found. The investigation was continuing, he said.
“Thank you to the brave @ PAStatePolice troopers for their vigilance in pursuing the Facebook killer,” Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf tweeted. “Thankful no one in PA was hurt.”
Stephens, 37, had been charged with aggravated murder. Williams said family members of the victim had been notified.
“For them, this is not over,” Williams said. Godwin’s family said Monday they forgave the alleged gunman.
“Each one of us forgives the killer, the murderer,” Tonya Godwin- Baines, a daughter of the victim, told Cleveland TV station WJW. “We want to wrap our arms around him.”
Cleveland police said Stephens posted horrifying video of the apparently random killing of the father of 10 and grandfather of 14. It was later removed.
A son, Robert Godwin Jr., said: “Steve, I forgive you ... I’m not happy ( with) what you did but I forgive you.”
The family pleaded with Stephens to turn himself in. “To the young man who murdered my daddy,” Godwin- Baines told the TV station, “I ask that you please surrender. I forgive you and love you, but most importantly, God loves you. God can heal your mind and save your soul.”
Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson had announced a reward of up to $ 50,000 for information leading to the arrest of Stephens.
The alleged shooter claimed to have killed at least a dozen other people, although police said they have no evidence of it.
Detectives contacted Stephens on his cellphone shortly after the shooting but were unable to convince him to turn himself in. That kicked off a frantic search, with police officers and the FBI scouring the city and the region for Stephens to no avail.