Cleveland Police have announced a reward of US $50,000 for information leading to the arrest of Steve Stephens, a Cleveland man who allegedly shot and killed an elderly man, and shared a gruesome video of the incident on Facebook on Sunday.
Stephens broadcast the killing of 74-year-old Robert Godwin Sr. on his Facebook page and, in separate videos, claimed to have committed over a dozen other murders, according to a Cleveland Police Department release. He remains at large over 24 hours after the shooting.
Police Chief Calvin Williams announced Monday afternoon that the search for Stephens had been expanded to “basically all over the country,” with the FBI, U.S. Marshals and numerous city police departments involved.
Williams denied reports that Stephens was spotted in Philadelphia, saying that police had received dozens of different tips and that they are none the wiser about Stephens’ whereabouts.
Earlier, Philadelphia police had tweeted that schools in that city’s Fairmount Park neighbourhood were placed on precautionary lockdown after they received information that Stephens might be in the area.
The shocking video uploaded by Stephens shows him seated in a car as he says, “Found me somebody I’m going to kill — this guy right here, this old dude.” He then exits the vehicle, walks up to Godwin Sr. and mentions the name of a woman, “Joy Lane.” Godwin Sr. doesn’t appear to recognize the woman’s name.
“She’s the reason this is about to happen to you,” Stephens says in the video, before appearing to shoot Godwin Sr. in the head, killing him on the spot.
The woman in question later reached out to CBS News and confirmed that she had been in a relationship with Stephens for several years.
“Steve really is a nice guy… he is generous with everyone he knows. He was kind and loving to me and my children. This is a very difficult time for me and my family,” Lane told CBS News in a text message.
Williams confirmed earlier that Lane was co-operating with the investigation, but he refused to pinpoint a motive behind Stephens’ random targeting of Godwin Sr.
“There are a lot of things that go on in people’s lives and we, at this point, cannot concentrate on one issue that may or may not have led to this,” he said.
WATCH: Police not sure of motive behind Facebook murder
The police chief said the incident had been “traumatizing” to the people of Cleveland.
“We’re all standing here because of what unfortunately happened to one of our citizens in the city, minding his own business, going about his day on Easter.”
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Cleveland police spoke to suspect of ‘heinous’ murder by phone -
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Cleveland police urge public to be careful, vigilant following murder -
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Cleveland police warn anyone helping murder suspect -
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Murder suspect’s last known location at site of deadly shooting -
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Police haven’t confirmed other Steve Stephens murder victims -
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Cleveland murder suspect has no criminal record
Earlier Monday, Williams said police have been searching “unceasingly” for Stephens, but “to no avail.” He said detectives briefly established contact with Stephens on his cellphone.
Williams also said police hadn’t learned of any other victims.
WATCH: Suspect in alleged Facebook Live murder says he’s not being taken seriously over comments he killed others
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U.S. Marshal Peter Elliott said he is confident that Stephens will be tracked down sooner rather than later.
“We’re going to make this individual’s world very, very, very small,” he said.
Meanwhile, the victim’s daughter took to Facebook to plead with people not to share the video of the shooting.
She also warned people not to donate money towards fake fundraising pages set up to exploit public sympathy towards the Godwin family.
WATCH: Fake GoFundMe campaigns set-up for murdered elderly Cleveland man
Stephens was employed at Beech Brook, a mental health facility for children, a spokesperson for the agency told KTLA.
“We are shocked and horrified like everyone else,” the spokesperson said. “To think that one of our employees could do this is awful.”
The video of the killing remained on Facebook for nearly three hours before it was taken down and Stephens’ page deactivated.
“This is a horrific crime and we do not allow this kind of content on Facebook,” a spokesperson for Facebook said. “We work hard to keep a safe environment on Facebook, and are in touch with law enforcement in emergencies when there are direct threats to physical safety.”
WATCH: Man weeps, says he had just seen 74-year-old Facebook murder victim
This isn’t the first time Facebook has been used to broadcast an act of violence. In January, four people in Chicago were charged with hate crimes after they allegedly beat and taunted a disabled man while streaming the assault on Facebook Live.
Two months later and also in Chicago, a 15-year-old girl was gang-raped while around 40 people watched a Facebook Live video of the incident, none of them reporting the attack to police.
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