Facebook Live Murder Suspect Steve Stephens ‘Lost Everything to Gambling’
Police in Cleveland were searching for a homicide suspect who they said broadcast a videotaped killing on Facebook and claimed to have committed another 15 murders, though these claims are yet to be verified.
The search for Steve Stephens, 37, extended beyond Ohio to four other states late Sunday following the Easter morning gruesome killing of 74-year-old Robert Godwin Sr. in Cleveland while Stephens broadcast the attack live via Facebook. The video remained up for three hours.
In the video, Stephens gets out of his car and appears to randomly target Godwin, 74, who is holding a plastic shopping bag. Stephens says the name of a woman, whom Godwin does not seem to recognize.
"She's the reason that this is about to happen to you," Stephens tells Godwin before pointing a gun at him. Godwin can be seen shielding his face with the shopping bag.
Facebook said the suspect did go live on the social media website at one point during the day, but not during the killing. Police earlier had said that Stephens had broadcast it on Facebook Live.
A series of posts Sunday on what authorities said was Stephens' Facebook page complained that he had "lost everything" to gambling.
- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com
