Erie, Pennsylvania, Shooting Leaves 9 Dead, Including Suspect, Police Say

ERIE, Pa. — A 45-year-old man fatally shot eight people — including a pregnant woman, children and several relatives — inside an Erie, Pennsylvania, home before taking his own life, authorities said Saturday.

Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said the gunman was related to seven of those killed in Friday’s mass shooting. The eighth victim was a friend of the pregnant woman.

Investigators reviewing video and audio from the scene heard what appeared to be muffled gunfire from inside the house shortly before 5 p.m. Friday. Soon afterward, two “distressed” women arrived and repeatedly struck the front door. When the gunman came outside, he shot them as they moved toward him, then went back into the residence, Lorah said.

Officers found both women dead outside when they arrived. Using a drone and a robot before entering, police discovered the bodies of a 5-year-old boy and a 1-year-old girl on the first floor, two women and two young men in a stairwell, and the suspected shooter on the second floor.

“Out of respect for the victims and the families, I will not discuss the details of what our officers encountered inside that home,” Lorah said at a news conference. “But I want our community to understand the gravity of what happened and the profound impact this tragedy has had on those involved and on our community as a whole.”

The police chief did not identify a possible motive. Investigators plan to speak with additional family members and review the cellphones belonging to the two women who were killed outside.

“They knew something was going on at that house,” Lorah said. “We have to figure out what that is.”

Police reached the home within minutes of receiving a ShotSpotter alert. The controversial system uses artificial intelligence and a network of microphones to detect sounds believed to be gunfire. Authorities said no further shots were fired after officers arrived.

Lorah said some sounds that could have been confused with gunshots were actually flashbang devices, chemical munitions deployed by SWAT officers.

YOU MAY ALSO READ: Man Kicked Down Apartment Door and Killed Ex-Partner’s New Lover

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said he had offered his administration’s “full support” to Erie Mayor Daria Devlin, who addressed the victims’ families during the briefing.

“I am so deeply sorry. What happened to you was horrific, and there is nothing that any of us can say today that will make this any easier,” Devlin said. “But you do need to know that our entire community is with you, we’re grieving with you. And we are here to support you.”

District Attorney Elizabeth Hirz called on the public to avoid drawing conclusions while detectives continue investigating the Erie shooting.

“Please do not allow rumors, speculation or unverified information to add to the pain that these families are already experiencing,” she said.

Erie is located roughly 120 miles north of Pittsburgh.

At a campaign rally outside Philadelphia, Shapiro referred to the Erie killings along with the early Saturday shooting of two Philadelphia police officers.

“Today has been a dark day across this commonwealth,” he said.
____