Pennsylvania shooter who killed 8 was family patriarch, father of slain toddler says – National

ERIE, Pa. (AP) — A man whose toddler was among eight people killed in a mass shooting in Erie, Pa., said Sunday that the shooter was a grandfather who never seemed distressed or out of the ordinary.

“I think it was a front for him,” Julius Windham said as he stood in front of a memorial to the victims of Friday’s shooting, including his 1-year-old daughter, Amarianna, her pregnant mother, and the woman’s 5-year-old son and unborn baby.

“Him every day, him smiling and just being — you would think nothing like that would happen,” Windham said.

The 45-year-old shooter committed suicide. Authorities have not released his name, but Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said he is related to seven of the victims. The eighth was a friend of the pregnant woman, he said. Police have also not made their names public.

Among those killed were 2 women outside the house

Mourners on Sunday placed candles, flowers and stuffed animals outside the home where the man opened fire shortly before 5 p.m. Friday. Windham wore a T-shirt with photos of the slain woman and children and the words “Forever In My Heart.”

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“Words can’t even explain what I’m going through right now,” Windham said. “But I have to be strong for my community, you know what I’m saying? My family, my daughters, my sons, everyone.”

Video and audio evidence recovered by investigators included muffled gunshot sounds coming from inside the home just before two “distressed” women arrived and began banging on the door, Lorah said. The gunman then came out and shot them as they ran towards him, before going back inside.

Responding officers found the two women dead outside. After deploying a drone and a robot, they went inside and found the bodies of the 5-year-old boy and the 1-year-old girl on the first floor; two other women and two young men in a stairwell; and the shooter on the second floor.

“Out of respect for the victims and their families, I will not discuss the details of what our officers encountered inside that home,” the chief said at a news conference.

“But I want our community to understand the seriousness of what happened and the profound impact this tragedy has had on those involved and our community as a whole,” he said.

Police refuse to discuss motive as investigation continues

Erie is about 120 miles north of Pittsburgh.

Lorah declined to discuss motive, but suggested mental health could be a factor. He said investigators would speak to relatives and examine cellphones of the women killed outside the home.

“They knew something was going on in that house,” Lorah said. “We need to understand what it is.”

Nicole and Debra Eller, whose best friend was among the victims, said they have known the family for more than 30 years.

Nicole Eller said the shooter “was a good guy, and then he started going downhill with everything.”

“They were a lovely family. Who would have thought this would ever happen?” » Debra Eller said. “Oh my God, this is so upsetting. This should never have happened to her or her children or anyone. Her grandchildren, her children, how can you do this?”

The Erie shooting is reminiscent of the 1982 massacre in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, in which a man killed 13 people, including five of his own children.

At a news conference Saturday, Erie Mayor Daria Devlin addressed part of her remarks directly to the victims’ families.

“I am deeply sorry,” Devlin said. What happened to you is horrible, and there’s nothing any of us can say today that will make it easier. … Our entire community is with you, we are in mourning with you. And we are here to support you.

© 2026 The Canadian Press