Family of Facebook murder victim: We forgive the killer

The police chief said Stephens apparently chose Godwin at random.

Watch CBN News Reporter Charlene Aaron's interview with Chris Pandolfo of the Conservative Review about the trend of crime played out on social media.

The man who randomly killed a Cleveland retiree and posted video of the crime on Facebook shot himself to death on Tuesday in Pennsylvania, police said.

Godwin will be laid to rest Saturday, almost a week after he his last meal with his children. The city of Erie became an area of high interest in the multi-state manhunt as law enforcement referred at one point to a "pinged" cell tower early in the investigation before Stephens shut off his phone.

To buy time, DuCharme gave Stephens his nuggets and told him his fries would take an extra minute. State Police Maj. William Teper Jr. would say only that the tip came from a "concerned citizen".

Ducharme said employees there "weren't 100 percent sure, but we had a pretty good idea" that the man was Stephens.

She told WJW-TV she and Stephens had once looked at engagement rings, but they recently "mutually parted ways", in part because he had a gambling issue.

The woman said "my mouth fell open" as she watched her ex stream live video from in front of her workplace, detailing "this is where [she] works and what he was about to do".

The manhunt ended Tuesday in Erie, Pennsylvania, after a drive-through worker recognized Stephens.

"What it's being used for is not what it was meant to be used for", she said.

Troopers initiated a chase that lasted for roughly two miles and then attempted a move to try to disable the white Ford Fusion he was driving, officials said.

"As the officers approached that vehicle, Steve Stephens took his own life", Cleveland police chief Calvin Williams said. They're testing the gun to see if it's the one he used in the killing.

"She's the reason why this is about to happen to you", Stephens said on a video posted on Facebook. The company has since announced it is launching a review for reporting harmful content. The daughter of the Facebook murder victim has a message for the killer: I want him to know that "he's loved by God". Within a day, authorities expanded the search nationwide and offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to his capture.

While Stephens alone is responsible for the episode, the woman told NBC News that the easy publicity he was able to attract on Facebook likely escalated the crisis.