1 year ago
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The 28-year-old Virginia bull who killed 3 household members of a Riverside teen had posed online arsenic a teen to “groom” the 15-year-old girl, the Riverside Police Department said Wednesday.
Austin Lee Edwards portrayed himself arsenic a 17-year-old portion communicating online with the girl, utilizing “grooming” methods specified arsenic asking for oregon trading sexually explicit images, providing gifts specified arsenic drugs, intoxicant oregon acquisition cards and giving retired compliments, Riverside Police Chief Larry Gonzalez said Wednesday astatine a quality conference. He said it is inactive nether probe however agelong the integer narration betwixt Edwards and the teen miss transpired and connected what level they utilized to conscionable oregon communicate.
“This is simply a wide class of online exploitation,” Gonzalez said. “This benignant of victimization takes spot crossed each platform, societal media, messaging apps, gaming platforms, etc.”
“This is yet different horrific reminder of the predators existing online who prey connected our children,” helium said. “If you’ve already had this speech with your kids connected however to beryllium harmless online and connected societal media, delight person it again. If not, commencement it present to amended support them.”
Police judge Edwards, who was a recently sworn-in instrumentality enforcement serviceman successful agrarian southwest Virginia, connected with the teen miss online by “catfishing” — pretending to beryllium idiosyncratic he’s not. Then helium drove crossed the state to her location successful Riverside, wherever helium killed her parent and grandparents and acceptable occurrence to the home, earlier driving disconnected with the girl. His conveyance was aboriginal stopped successful San Bernardino County, wherever helium was killed successful a shootout with section police. The miss was not harmed and is present successful the attraction of kid protective services, officials said.
The 3 household members killed were identified arsenic Mark Winek, 69, a longtime shot and softball manager astatine Arlington High School; his wife, Sharie Winek, 65, a devoted parent and grandmother; and their daughter, Brooke Winek, 38, a azygous parent of 2 teenage girls — including the miss manipulated by Edwards. They each lived unneurotic successful the Riverside house.
The 2nd girl was not location astatine the clip of the killings, constabulary said.
“This horrific lawsuit started with an inappropriate online romance betwixt a predator and a child,” Michelle Blandin said done tears Wednesday, the lone surviving girl of Mark and Sharie Winek. “He took an oath to protect, yet helium failed to bash so. Instead, helium preyed connected the astir vulnerable.”
The Virginia instrumentality enforcement serviceman who showed up astatine the Wineks’ location Friday had completed the constabulary academy earlier this year, according to Virginia instrumentality enforcement officials, and had been recently hired arsenic a patrol lawman with a region Sheriff’s Office conscionable 10 days before his rampage successful Riverside.
While Blandin said that Edwards tried to kidnap her niece, Riverside constabulary officials said they are not yet describing the enactment arsenic an abduction, arsenic they are inactive combing done carnal and integer evidence, trying to recognize if she was coerced oregon threatened to get successful Edwards’ car. However, Riverside constabulary spokesperson Ryan Railsback said determination is nary denotation the teen miss was progressive successful the killings oregon fire.
“In this tragic infinitesimal of our family, our grief, we anticipation immoderate bully volition travel from this,” Blandin said. “Parents, please, delight cognize your child’s online activity. Ask questions astir what they’re doing and whom they are talking to; anybody tin accidental they’re idiosyncratic else. ... If thing similar this horrific calamity tin hap present successful our vicinity successful our community, it tin hap anywhere.”
Police were first notified of a concern afoul connected the Winek family’s cul-de-sac Friday morning, erstwhile neighbors called successful astir a pistillate who appeared to beryllium distressed portion getting into a reddish Kia Soul with a antheral driver. Soon after, calls came successful astir a occurrence astatine the Wineks’ home.
While firefighters responded, they recovered 3 bodies successful the entryway of the home, and upon pulling them outside, officials rapidly ruled their deaths a homicide.
Riverside constabulary spokesperson Ryan Railsback didn’t expound connected the origin of decease oregon injuries but called it a “very disturbing transgression scene.” He besides said it appeared the occurrence was “intentionally ignited.”
Several hours aboriginal and astir 200 miles from the home, authorities spotted Edwards’ conveyance successful Kelso, portion of unincorporated San Bernardino County, according to a connection from the sheriff-coroner.
When a SWAT squad attempted to intercept Edwards’ car, helium led section deputies connected a chase, during which helium changeable astatine the SWAT conveyance aggregate times, officials said. Eventually, Edwards drove disconnected the road, and San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies rescued the teen, who had been wrong the car during the chase, the connection said.
Deputies said that erstwhile Edwards pointed a weapon astatine a Sheriff’s Department helicopter, deputies fired astatine Edwards, sidesplitting him.
Blandin said she is grateful her niece is live and good aft everything that happened and called connected neighbors to look retired for each different — arsenic she said her parents’ assemblage did.
“The loving neighbors connected my parents’ thoroughfare saw an unfamiliar car and they instantly reported it to authorities,” Blandin said. “Making that telephone from that neighbour saved my niece’s life; and that neighbour is simply a leader successful our eyes.”
She said conscionable days earlier this tragedy, her household celebrated an aboriginal Thanksgiving together.
“Nobody could ideate this transgression happening to my family, to our family, particularly it being conscionable 1 time aft Thanksgiving,” Blandin said.
Blandin called her sister “a loving azygous ma who did her champion to rise her 2 teenage daughters successful a loving way.”
She said her sister recovered joyousness supporting her children astatine school, watching them successful colour defender and choir.
Blandin called her dada a silly antheral who was soft-spoken and humble and would “go retired of his mode to assistance a person oregon alien successful need.”
She said his emotion for coaching began successful 1993 astatine La Sierra High School, wherever helium coached her girls’ shot squad for 4 years. He went connected to manager astatine galore antithetic Riverside precocious schools, uncovering his location astatine Arlington High, wherever helium was an adjunct shot and softball coach.
“He was a antheral with a large and caring bosom who unselfishly gave to his pupil athletes,” Blandin said.
She said her mom, Sharie, had the “biggest giving bosom imaginable.”
“She loved my sister and I, on with her 4 granddaughters, with each ounce of her being,” said Blandin, arsenic she gripped her household members’ hands. “She enjoyed baking with us, and the item of the twelvemonth was baking and decorating Christmas cookies. That is simply a contented that I volition transportation on.”
She thanked radical for their generosity to the family’s GoFundMe, which she said volition beryllium utilized to enactment her nieces, including for a assemblage savings fund.
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