The suspect has been identified as 26-year-old Andre Gordon Jr (Picture: AP)
Authorities have detained a suspect in the killing of three people who was reported to have barricaded himself in at a home in New Jersey.
Police in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, identified the suspect as Andre Gordon Jr, 26.
He is accused of killing his stepmother, teenage sister and the mother of his children in shootings at two homes in Falls Township, in the east of the state.
The attacks, which took place in the small hours of Saturday morning, resulted in a shelter-in-place order being issued for several hours, with a St Patrick’s Day parade being cancelled and a children’s theme park closed.
Authorities are still investigating a possible motive for the shootings.
The suspect is reported to have had previous brushes with the law.
However, Falls Township Police Chief Nelson Whitney has been quoted as describing these as ‘nothing that would indicate that anything like this would happen.’
Gordan is accused of killing his stepmother, teenage sister and the mother of his children (Picture: AP)
After the initial shootings, Gordon is reported to have fled the scene in a stolen car, before then allegedly stealing another from a nearby car park and eventually holing up with an unconfirmed number of hostages at a residence in Trenton, New Jersey.
Officers were seen surrounding the house, with the block taped off, using a megaphone to communicate with Gordon in a bid to get him to come out.
He was taken into custody following a hostage situation and stand-off with local police in New Jersey (Picture: Middletown Township Police Department)
His alleged victims have been identified as his 52-year-old stepmother Karen Gordon, his 13-year-old sister Kera Gordon, and the 25-year-old mother of his two children, Taylor Daniel.
Gordon and Daniel’s children are understood to have been present at the time of her death.
More Trending
Daniel’s mother is also reported to have been assaulted with the butt of a rifle, though she is expected to recover from her injuries.
Josh Shapiro, governor of Pennsylvania, said in social media posts that state police had been called in to assist local law enforcement agencies with securing Gordon’s arrest.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.