A Virginia law enforcement officer accused of “catfishing” a 15-year-old girl and killing her three family members last month ultimately killed himself with a government-provided firearm, the department revealed Saturday.
Austin Lee Edwards, 28, drove across the country and on Nov. 25 killed the teen’s mother and grandparents and set fire to their home in Riverside, California, authorities said.
Austin Lee Edwards, 28, is accused of killing three people in Riverside. He was shot and killed by San Bernardino County deputies.
(Riverside Police Department)
That same day, Edwards committed suicide during a shootout with San Bernardino sheriff’s deputies. The teenager was rescued. Police previously indicated that Edwards may have been killed in a shootout with officers.
“Our detectives determined that the weapon used was an Edwards department issued semi-automatic service pistol,” sheriff’s spokeswoman Gloria Huerta said in a statement.
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The cause of death of the girl’s three relatives remains unclear.
Edwards, a resident of North Chesterfield, Virginia, appears to have posed as a 17-year-old boy online in order to pursue a romantic relationship with the girl. Police said Edwards obtained her personal information by misleading her with a false identity, known as “catfishing.”
Mark Winek, 69, Sharie Winek, 65, and Brooke Winek, 38, were found dead inside their home in Riverside, California.
(Riverside Police Department)
Authorities said the girl stopped contacting him after he asked her to send him nude photos.
Edwards was a former Virginia state trooper and a deputy sheriff in Washington County, Virginia at the time of the murders.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the Virginia State Police and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office for comment.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
