A grandfather killed eight people in a mass shooting at a home in Erie, Pennsylvania, on Friday, before turning the gun on himself. Among the victims were his one-year-old granddaughter, Amarianna, her pregnant mother, the woman's five-year-old son, and an unborn baby, according to Julius Windham, Amarianna's father.
The 45-year-old gunman was related to seven of the victims, with the eighth victim being a friend of the pregnant woman, Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said. Authorities have not publicly released the names of the gunman or the victims.
People who knew the shooter stated he had not shown signs of being capable of such violence. Julius Windham said on Sunday that the man never seemed distressed or out of the ordinary, suggesting it was a "front for him."
Investigators recovered video and audio evidence, including muffled gunshot sounds from inside the home before two "distressed" women arrived and began pounding on the door. Chief Lorah said the gunman then came out and shot them before returning inside.
Responding officers found the two women dead outside. Inside, they discovered the bodies of the five-year-old boy and one-year-old girl on the first floor, two more women and two young men in a stairwell, and the shooter on the second floor.
Chief Lorah declined to discuss a motive but suggested mental health could be a factor. He stated investigators would speak with relatives and examine the cellphones of the women killed outside the home to understand what was happening at the house.