SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
A gunman in Falls Township, Pa., shot and killed at least three people today. The suspect, according to the AP, has been taken into custody from a house in Trenton, N.J. The shootings and the manhunt that followed led to lockdowns, business closings and the cancellation of a Saint Patrick's Day parade. Joining us now is NPR's Juliana Kim, who's been covering the story all day. Hey, Juliana.
JULIANA KIM, BYLINE: Hey there.
DETROW: So the suspect spent much of the day barricaded in Trenton. Was anybody in there with him?
KIM: Thankfully, local police were able to evacuate all the hostages at the house earlier today and they reported no injuries. We actually saw video of police helping some of those people down ladders from the second floor. Authorities haven't exactly shared how many hostages there were, but we knew - but we do know that there were multiple law enforcement agencies today assisting with the manhunt and the hostage situation from local police to state authorities to the FBI.
DETROW: So take us back to the beginning. How did this all get started?
KIM: Local authorities identified the suspect as 26-year-old - as a 26-year-old man named Andre Gordon, who is believed to be homeless. And before I go any further, I want to preface that some of these details are disturbing and hard to listen to. But police say this morning, Gordon went to a house in Falls Township, Pa., and fatally shot his stepmother and 13-year-old sister. There were three other people in the house, too, but police say they were able to hide as he searched for them. Bucks County District Attorney Jennifer Schorn told reporters today that Gordon then went to a second location.
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JENNIFER SCHORN: Following the shootings, at approximately 9:01 a.m., Gordon drove to the unit block of Edgewood Lane, Levittown, where he forcibly broke into a residence, after which he shot and killed 25-year-old Taylor Daniel, with whom he has two children.
KIM: Schorn also said Gordon beat the woman's mother, and now she's being treated at a local hospital. After those shootings, police say Gordon stole a man's car and fled to a house in North Trenton. And that's where he's been since the afternoon.
DETROW: Do police know what kind of weapon the suspect was using?
KIM: According to Falls Township Police, Gordon used an AR-15-style assault rifle, which is also what he used to beat one of his victims. But as of right now, it's unclear how he got the weapon.
DETROW: And we heard about these widespread lockdowns. How has the wider area responded today?
KIM: Yeah. I mean, it's been a hard day. You know, before the suspect was found, Falls Township was under lockdown for a few hours. And police told residents to lock their doors and stay away from windows. At stores, customers were asked to abruptly leave so that businesses can close, including the nearby "Sesame Street"-themed amusement park called Sesame Place. Organizers also canceled the county's Saint Patrick's Day parade that was supposed to happen today. And the shelter in place lifted around 1 p.m., and some places, like the local mall and Target did reopen. But overall, it's just been a really hard, heartbreaking day in the community.
DETROW: Yeah. That's NPR's Juliana Kim. Thank you so much.
KIM: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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