DA: Montgomery County murder spree victims shot and cut; suspect found dead
PENNSBURG, Pa. (WPVI) -- Investigators are releasing new details about the murder spree in Montgomery County that left six people dead, one person wounded, and the suspect dead.
The victims were found with either gunshot wounds, cutting injuries, or both, District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman said at a news conference.
The body of the suspect, Bradley Stone, was discovered by police along a stream bed in a wooded area about 200 yards from Stone's home in Pennsburg, Pa. on Tuesday afternoon.
While it was previously announced by the DA that Stone died of self-inflicted stab wounds, there are now questions over his cause of death.
Police felt he must not have gone far, because they found his car and cell phone near his home.
His body was removed from the wooded area late Tuesday.
The victims of the murder spree included Stone's ex-wife, 33-year-old Nicole Hill.
While no motive has been given, Ferman confirmed what neighbors had previously told Action News, that there was an ongoing custody dispute between Stone and his ex-wife over their two daughters.
Stone and Hill had fighting over their children's custody since she filed for divorce in 2009. He filed an emergency request for custody this month and was denied Dec. 9, Ferman said.
"There's no reason, no valid excuse, no justification for snuffing out these six innocent lives and injuring another child," Ferman said. "This is just a horrific tragedy that our community has had to endure. We're really numb from what we've had to go through over the past two days."
The other victims were identified as Hill's sister, Patricia Flick, her husband, Aaron, and their 14-year-old daughter, Nina; Hill's mother, 57-year-old Joanne Hill and her 75-year-old grandmother, Patricia Hill.
There was one survivor of the rampage, 17-year-old Anthony Flick, the son of Patricia and Aaron Flick. He suffered a number of cutting wounds to the hands and head, Ferman said.
The wounds appeared to be "defensive in nature," according to Ferman, adding he remains hospitalized in "very serious condition."
The manhunt for Stone, a former Marine, began early Monday morning after authorities began following a trail of death that eventually led them to six bodies in three different locations.
Nicole Hill was found shot inside the Pheasant Run Apartments in the 100 block of Main Street in Lower Salford Twp. after a 911 call around 4:55 a.m.
A neighbor there, who did not want to be identified, told Action News, "I heard 3 or 4 gunshots. I heard the kids yelling, saying 'Mommy no! mommy no!'" He kept saying, 'We gotta go, we gotta go."
The neighbor continued, "I asked him if everything was okay, and I saw the kids and the kids' father exiting the house, and they didn't have any coats on or anything. They just had their pajamas on."
"He was like, 'She's hurt pretty bad. We gotta leave,'" the neighbor continued.
Stone then took their two daughters from the home, Ferman said, and dropped them off at a neighbor's house in Pennsburg shortly after 5:00 a.m.
Stone's daughters are safe.
Several hours later, Patricia, Aaron and Nina Flick were found dead inside a home in Souderton, Pa. That is also where Anthony Flick was found injured.
Investigators believe the victims in Souderton were Stone's first alleged victims, who were shot around 3:30 a.m.
The bodies of Joanne and Patricia Hill were also found early Monday morning in the 100 block of West 5th Street in Lansdale.
People who live nearby say they often saw Stone confronting his ex-wife outside.
"They weren't getting along," said Corlie Stills. "They started arguing with one another: 'I don't want you to have her. I don't want you to see her.' You know...."
There was a false alarm in Doylestown late Monday night after a reported carjacking attempt. The suspect description matched that of Stone, but police called off that search by Tuesday morning.
Meanwhile, neighbors have said Stone had issues stemming from his time in the military.
According to a Marine spokesperson, Stone is a former Marine reservist who served from 2002 to 2011, with one deployment to Iraq, leaving with the rank of sergeant. He was deployed to Iraq from April, 2008 until July, 2008.
Stone and Hill married in 2004 and filed for divorce in 2009, the Associated Press reports, citing court records.
He had faced several driving-under-the-influence charges, one of which was handled in veterans' court and led to a three- to 23-month sentence, the AP reports.
Brad Stone remarried last year, according to his Facebook page and court records, and has an infant son. Neither his wife nor the son were injured. His wife's Facebook page shows their son and Stone's daughters having their picture taken with Santa on Saturday.
