EAST LANSDOWNE, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Five of the six people who died after a shooting and fire erupted in an East Lansdowne home earlier this month were killed by gunfire, Delaware County investigators revealed Wednesday.
Police responded on Feb. 7 to reports of a child shot inside the Le residence at 58 Lewis Ave. Upon arrival, investigators said 43-year-old Cahn Van Le opened fire on officers, wounding two, before the house erupted into flames.
Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer said Van Le had gotten into an argument with one of his nieces, then shot her and other members of his family. The Le grandparents, who also lived in the house, were able to get out and call 911.
Authorities recovered six bodies in the days after the fire. They identified the remains as Van Le; his brother, Xuong Le; his sister-in-law, Britni; and their three children, Natalya, 17, Nakayla, 13, and Xavier, 10. According to the medical examiner, the Le parents and their children all died from gunfire except Xavier, who died from smoke inhalation.
Officials said Van Le took his own life after starting the fire and exchanging gunfire with police.
Although investigators haven’t been able to determine just what caused Van Le to kill his family or how he caused the fire, Stollsteimer said the criminal investigation is over and their priority now is to provide support for the surviving Le grandparents as well as the surrounding community.
"They're in complete and utter shock," said Stollsteimer of the Le grandparents. "They came here as refugees to build a new life and they did so in a beautiful community, and in one fell swoop for some unanswerable reason, everything they held dear is now gone."