Church offers hope as pregnant mother named among 9 killed in Erie house massacre

Faith leaders in Erie, Pennsylvania, are pledging support after a 45-year-old grandfather fatally shot eight people at his home Friday, including his wife, pregnant daughter, two sons and two grandchildren, before killing himself. 

“Our purpose as clergy, as people of God, is to come together and see how we can come to the aid of those that were negatively impacted firsthand by this tragedy,” Rev. Anthony Harris, senior pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church, said Sunday evening at a gathering of local faith leaders at the church, according to Erie News Now. “We’re not trying to take any forward steps. We want to work in step with the community, with the families, and let them know that we have support.”

At a press conference Saturday, Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said officers responded to an alert indicating two gunshots at a house at approximately 4:53 p.m. Friday. He said they arrived at the location within minutes and found two dead women outside the residence. Lorah said they reviewed video evidence which showed the two women “arriving at the residence appearing distressed, seeking assistance from neighbors and pounding on the door.”

“The audio-video also appears to capture muffled gunfire from inside the residence before the suspect emerged and fatally shot both women,” he said.

After attempts to contact anyone inside failed and officers used drones to assess the home, Lorah said SWAT officers breached multiple doors and deployed a robot before finding the other victims inside.

“Based on the evidence gathered to this date, investigators have determined that the victims inside the residence were killed and the suspect died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound before officers arrived,” Lorah said.

He further confirmed that eight of the nine people who died, including the suspect, were related, and that one of the two women killed outside was a family friend. Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook on Monday identified the suspect as Matthew Stone Sr., 45. Lorah said a .40-caliber handgun was found on the suspect’s body on the second floor of the home. The gun was registered to him.

Cook identified the adult victims as family friend Twila Tanner, 51; Lora Roberts, 37;Michelle Stone, 44; Angelina Stone, 24; and her brothers Matthew Stone Jr., 21, and Jonathan Stone, 19. Police said the suspect was married to Michelle Stone and that Angelina, Matthew Jr. and Jonathan were their children. Family members have identified Angelina Stone’s 5-year-old son as Isiah Hodges and Roberts as her aunt.

Julius Windham, also identified as Juicesiyah Alexander Ezekiel, told Erie News Now that his 22-month-old daughter, Amari’anna Renee Windham, was among the victims.

“She's the most beautiful baby God could have created,” he said.

Windham said his daughter’s mother, Angelina Stone, who is also the daughter of the shooting suspect, was pregnant. She was killed along with her unborn child and 5-year-old son. Windham’s sister, Lisa Simmers, said Angelina Stone was expected to give birth in a few days. The unborn child was a son named Kyrie, according to family member Aaliyah Williams in a GoFundMe campaign that has already raised over $37,700 to help the family with funeral expenses.

“Angelina’s father killed Angelina and her children in a murder-suicide, and now our family is facing the painful task of laying them to rest. We have no finances ready to cover this loss, and we have only two weeks from today to get everything done,” Williams wrote. “This is more than our family can carry alone right now, and we truly need the community to rally around us.”

“As I said last night, some scenes stay with you long after you leave them. This is one of those tragic scenes. 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. “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.”

On Sunday, Ryan Gaines, senior pastor of Abundant Life Ministries, said he wanted to offer hope to the community by listening to what God is telling his people.

"You can just feel the grief. I was a block away, and I could feel the grief from that crime scene," he told Erie News Now.

Pastor Beth Siefert, who was filling in at St. Paul's Lutheran Church, also told the news outlet that the community needed God to process the tragedy.

"We have not become numb, even though this happens over and over and over again, and we know that we need to take time to grieve, to get over the shock of it and then to turn to our God for the help we need to process it," Siefert said.

In a statement Saturday, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said that his "heart breaks for this family. Lori and I are praying for their loved ones and the entire Erie community."  

Erie resident Meme LaTorre told USA Today that “This tragedy is very hurtful and confusing,” but the community will be leaning on their faith.

"A lot of people are asking why and how this could happen? I don’t think we’ll ever get the answers. As heartbreaking as it is I don’t think we need the answers, we’re just very sad for our community and the family,” LaTorre said.

“We’re very faithful people. We pray a lot. This boosts our prayers and we will be praying with people who aren’t just family. We extend our prayers. Our faith in God is going to increase because we all need Him right now.”