CLEVELAND — A man suspected of killing his newlywed wife, his sister-in-law and three young children killed himself Friday after police forced their way into the home he had fled to, authorities said.
Davon Crawford’s wife, Lechea, was killed about 4 miles away in the couple’s home Thursday night, along with her sister and the sister’s 4-year-old daughter and 2-year-old twins. A 7-year-old was wounded.
A relative said the Crawfords had recently married, and police said a 2-month-old baby was found unharmed.
On Friday, SWAT teams received information that Davon Crawford, 33, might be at another Cleveland home, police Lt. Thomas Stacho said. Police saw someone inside matching Crawford’s description and forced their way into the home.
“There was no standoff,” Stacho said. “As they confronted him, he shot himself.”
Police Chief Michael McGrath said it appears that some sort of domestic argument sparked Thursday’s shootings.
Crawford was convicted in 1995 of voluntary manslaughter, according to prison records. He was released from prison in 2000 and sent back in 2002 on a felonious assault conviction involving domestic violence. He was freed again in 2007.
While on parole, which ended last year, Crawford passed several urine tests for drugs, paid his child support, had a full-time job and had no run-ins with authorities, officials said.
