Erie shooting suspect Matthew Stone Sr identified as 6 adult victims are named
ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA: Authorities have identified six adult victims and the suspected gunman who died in a mass shooting at a home near Lake Erie on October 9.
Eight people, including a pregnant woman and two young children, were killed in the attack, which police are investigating as a domestic incident. Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook identified the adult victims and the suspected shooter, Matthew Stone Sr, 45, on October 12. Police said most of the victims were members of the same family and lived in the house where the shooting took place.
Matthew Stone Sr identified as suspected gunman in Erie shooting
Cook identified the adult victims as Twila Tanner, 51; Angelina Stone, 24; Jonathan Stone, 19; Matthew Stone Jr, 21; Michelle Stone, 44; and Lora Roberts, 37, according to the Erie Times-News, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Angelina Stone was eight months pregnant when she was killed. The other two victims were a 5-year-old boy and a girl aged 22 months. Authorities have not released the children's names because they are minors.
The suspected gunman, Matthew Stone Sr, was married to Michelle Stone. Their children were identified as Matthew Stone Jr, Jonathan Stone and Angelina Stone.
The two young children killed in the shooting were Angelina's children, according to police.
The deaths left several generations of the same family among the victims. Authorities have not established a motive for the shooting.
Cook ruled Stone Sr's death self-inflicted and the deaths of the other victims as homicides. All the victims except Lora Roberts were pronounced dead at the scene, according to the coroner.
No autopsies were performed on the victims or the suspected shooter.
Erie police chief reveals sequence of events before suspected gunman's death
Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said the shooting took place on the evening of October 9.
According to his account, the suspected gunman shot and killed six people inside the home before two women arrived outside.
The women, one of whom was a family friend, appeared to be in a “state of distress,” Lorah said, citing surveillance video.
The gunman allegedly shot both women before going back inside the house and shooting himself. Authorities said he died before police arrived.
The investigation is being treated as a domestic situation because many of the victims were related and lived together in the same home.
Police recovered a handgun that was legally registered to Stone Sr, Lorah said.
He also revealed that the suspected shooter had last interacted with police in 2022, but he did not provide further details about that encounter.
🚨DEVELOPING: #Pennsylvania: Nine people, including two children, are reported dead after a mass shooting and an hours-long standoff in Erie, Pennsylvania yesterday evening. The shooting occurred near 7th/Perry St. shortly after 5PM local time. Two woman were found dead on the street in front of a home while the additional victims were found dead inside. The suspect was also found dead, from what police believe is a self inflicted GSW. According to Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah, “There is no ongoing threat to the public”.
— CodeThreeNews (@CodeThreeNews) October 10, 2026
Erie shooting investigation continues as police chief describes horrific scene
Investigators have not determined what led to the shooting.
Lorah said authorities were still working to understand the circumstances and cautioned against drawing conclusions about the motive.
“I think mental health is at play here, but I think it is too soon to really go into a motive,” he said.
The police chief also spoke about the condition of the scene, describing it as the worst he had encountered during his years in law enforcement.
