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Montco shooting: 6 people dead and suspected gunman Bradley William Stone on the loose Pennsylvania shooting: Gunman Bradley William Stone who killed ex-wife and five others is at large, say police
(about 2 hours later)
Six people are dead and one has been wounded in shootings in several homes and the suspect remains on the loose, officials in the US say. A gunman who shot and killed six people with whom he had “a familial relationship” in a pre-dawn rampage outside Philadelphia on Monday, is still at large according to police.
District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman identified the suspect in the as 35-year-old Bradley William Stone. She says all of the victims have a “familial relationship” to Stone. Suspected gunman Bradley William Stone, 35, smashed through a glass door at his ex-wife’s apartment in Harleysville at 4am on Monday morning, before firing multiple shots and killing her. He then fled with their two children, the woman’s neighbours told reporters on the scene.
Police officers have converged on a home in Pennsburg, about 30 miles northwest of Philadelphia. They are using a megaphone to try to persuade Stone to surrender. Stone then moved on to the two nearby communities of Lansdale and Souderton, where he killed five people and severely injured one more, before he hid in a home in Pennsburg from which he has since fled, according to authorities. All the victims, including his ex-wife Nicole Hill, were reported to have been shot at close range.
“Bradley, this is the police department!” an officer yelled. “Come to the front door with your hands up. You're under arrest.” Stone had a “familial relationship” to all the victims, Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said, adding that his two children are safe.
Ms Ferman says Stone is known to use a cane or walker to assist him and was likely to be wearing military fatigues. Police are concentrating their search for Stone in and around Pennsburg, Pennsylvania, nearly 50 miles north of Philadelphia.
The shootings occurred at homes in Harleysville, Lansdale and Souderton, three towns that are within a few miles of each other. Stone is around 5-foot-10 inches (1.5m) and 195 pounds (88 kg), and was likely wearing military fatigues and was known to use a cane or walker, Ferman said.
Neighbours at the first shooting scene in Harleysville said they awoke around 4 am to the sounds of breaking glass and gunshots. Police with armoured vehicles and rifles flocked to Pennsburg after spending several hours at the home in Souderton where several victims were found. In Pennsburg, police tried to compel his surrender with a bullhorn and loud explosions.
One, Evon Weron, said the suspect is a former member of the military and that the first victim was his ex-wife. He told the Lansdale Reporter the couple had been fighting over custody of children. “Bradley, this is the police department!” officers yelled throughout the standoff. “Come to the front door with your hands up. You're under arrest.”
Police with armoured vehicles and rifles flocked to Pennsburg after spending several hours at the Souderton home where several victims were found. In March 2009, Stone and his then-wife, Nicole Stone, filed for divorce.
Several school districts ordered students and teachers to shelter in place. They recently sparred over custody of their two children, with Stone filing an emergency petition 5 December. Ms Stone responded with a counterclaim on 9 December, according to court records. The outcome of their dispute was not clear.
PA Nicole Stone's neighbours say they were awoken by the sounds of breaking glass and gunshots.
“She would tell anybody who would listen that he was going to kill her, and that she was really afraid for her life,” said Evan Weron, a neighbor of Stone's ex-wife, Nicole Stone.
Weron described Brad Stone as a former member of the military, and said Ms Stone would talk frequently about the custody dispute.
“[Ms Stone] came into the house a few times, a few separate occasions, crying about how it was very upsetting to her,” Weron said.
With Stone still at large, several school districts ordered students and teachers to shelter in place. The Souderton Area School District lifted the order after about two hours but said officials were monitoring the situation.
Additional reporting by AP