Facebook killer's confession to mum: 'I'm shooting people because I'm mad with Joy Lane'
WARNING, DISTRESSING CONTENT: The mother of a gunman accused of shooting and killing an elderly man, and posting video of the random attack on Facebook, said he told her before the shooting not to expect to see him again.
Robert Godwin Sr, 74, was shot and killed on Sunday, apparently at random, as he walked home after an Easter dinner in Cleveland, police and local media reported.
US police on Monday widened a manhunt for 37-year-old Steve Stephens, who they believe is armed and dangerous. Federal authorities offered a US$50,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.
The man's mother Maggie Green told CNN he visited her Saturday afternoon, a day before the shooting.
Her told her “If you see me again, it’ll be a miracle,” she said.
Ms Green said she then called him on Sunday after learning about the video and he told her he was shooting people because he was "mad with his girlfriend" Joy Lane, whom he referred to in the Facebook video.
Ms Lane sent a text message to CBS News saying she was “sorry that all of this has happened”.
“My heart & prayers goes out to the family members of the victim(s),” she wrote.
“Steve really is a nice guy… he is generous with everyone he knows. He was kind and loving to me and my children.”
Police said the woman was in a safe place.
Dozens of searches
Yesterday, Cleveland police alerted authorities in four nearby states, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana and Michigan, to be on the lookout for Stephens. Later in the day, they expanded their search nationwide.
Earlier reports claimed Stephens' mobile phone last released a signal, or ping, in Pennsylvania, however authorites said Stephens' last confirmed location was the scene of the crime and authorities did not know his location.
"Our reach now is basically all over this country. This is what we would consider a national search," Cleveland police chief Calvin Williams said.
"We know that Steve is still out there someplace. We don't know his condition and, of course, right now we don't know his location. We're asking the public to remain vigilant."
Police issued an arrest warrant for aggravated homicide against Stephens, described as a 1.85m, 110-kilo, black man with a full beard who was last seen in a white Ford Fusion with temporary license plates.
Authorities said that they were assuming he was still with his vehicle more than 24 hours after the murder.
In a video uploaded to Stephens' Facebook page, a man resembling him is seen exiting a vehicle and approaching his victim, who is shown with a gun to his head and then falling to the ground after a shot is fired.
"I killed 13, so I'm working on 14 as we speak," the suspect says in a second video clip. "I'm just driving around hitting motherf''''''ers, man. I just snapped man."
So far, however, police say they are aware of just one victim killed by Stephens.
''Manhunt for killer responsible for Facebook Live 'Easter day slaughter' of elderly man
Since the shooting, Facebook has taken down Stephens' videos.
"This is a horrific crime and we do not allow this kind of content on Facebook," the company said in a statement.
Cleveland detectives also made contact with Stephens by phone early in the investigation, Williams said.
"They tried to, of course, convince him to turn himself in and, of course, that hasn't happened to date," he said.
Earlier reports that Stephens might be on the run in Pennsylvania were not correct, police said.
Stephens worked for Beech Brook, a behavioral health agency serving children through mental health services, foster care and adoption, at-risk youth and other programs.
In his video, Stephens displayed his Beech Brook badge.
"We are shocked and horrified like everyone else," Nancy Kortemeyer, a spokeswoman for the facility told CNN.
"To think that one of our employees could do this is awful."
Facebook review
Facebook has launched a review of how it handles violent videos and other objectionable material, saying it needed to do better after the video of the killing remained on its service for more than two hours on Sunday.
"We prioritize reports with serious safety implications for our community, and are working on making that review process go even faster," Justin Osofsky, Facebook's vice president for global operations and media partnerships, said in a blog post.
