A national search is underway for Steve Stephens, the suspect behind a random deadly shooting of a 74-year-old man broadcast on Facebook on Easter. Authorities are offering a $50,000 reward for any information that leads to an arrest of Stephens, who is considered armed and dangerous. The money is coming from the FBI, the ATF and the US Marshals Service, as they fan out in an attempt to locate him.
Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams held a press conference this afternoon to explain the status of the search: “This is what we would consider a national search for Steve, so we are not going to leave any stone unturned.”
Reports of Stephens turning up in Philadelphia have been debunked by local police after a reported cell phone ping from Stephens was thought to have revealed his location, spreading the manhunt east:
Statement on police activity in Fairmount Park regarding Cleveland Ohio homicide suspect Steve Stephens pic.twitter.com/qYkd2DzxbP
— Philadelphia Police Department (@PhillyPolice) April 17, 2017
Stephens hasn’t been seen since Sunday afternoon, but authorities know he is driving a white Ford Fusion with Ohio temporary plates reading E363630 and they’re asking the public to keep an eye out for the man who is “without a doubt” armed and dangerous:
UPDATE Homicide suspect Steve Stephens' actual vehicle has Ohio Temp tag E363630 pic.twitter.com/tE3r5u4BNN
— Cleveland Police (@CLEpolice) April 17, 2017
Police update on Facebook homicide suspect: We "without a doubt" can say he is armed https://t.co/J3BwiMylco https://t.co/SapB0MF9EL
— The Lead CNN (@TheLeadCNN) April 17, 2017
According to Williams, the last known location of Stephens was in Cleveland, and ABC News reported that “authorities said detectives did initially make contact with Stephens via cell phone… but they were not able to track him or convince him to turn himself in.”
(Via ABC/Philly.com)