«Sextortion» prompted a former Virginia police officer to capture a teenage girl and kill her mother and grandparents in Southern California last week, police said Wednesday.

Police believe that 28-year-old Austin Lee Edwards, a former Virginia State Police officer working for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, posed as a 17-year-old boy online to hook up with the girl, who I lived in Riverside, California, Riverside. Police Chief Larry Gonzalez said at a news conference.

Edwards had traveled from Virginia to Riverside and was killed in a shootout with police.

“This is yet another horrifying reminder of the predators that exist online and that are preying on our children,” González said.

A memorial Monday outside the home of three people whose bodies were found inside in Riverside, California.Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

González said sextortion includes manipulating children for the purpose of having sexual conversations online, exchanging sexually explicit photos to use or possibly sell, or meeting in person.

“This type of victimization takes place on all platforms: social media, messaging apps, gaming platforms, etc.,” he said.

Common methods to facilitate this, González told reporters, include grooming tactics, such as sexual talk or role-playing; requesting or sharing sexually explicit images; developing a relationship through compliments, discussing shared interests, and «liking» their online posts; pretending to be younger; and offer or provide incentives for an ongoing relationship, such as alcohol, drugs, lodging, transportation, or food.

It was not immediately clear where the online catfishing took place or which, if any, of those tactics Edwards used beyond pretending to be younger.

A Riverside police spokesman did not immediately respond to follow-up inquiries.

Family photographs part of a memorial in the driveway of the home where three family members were murdered, on November 29, 2022 in Riverside, California.
Family photos at a memorial Tuesday in the driveway of the home where three family members were killed in Riverside, California.Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Mychelle Blandin, 43, the girl’s aunt, told reporters Wednesday that the girl is 15 years old. Winek is the sister of the girl’s late mother, Brooke Winek, 38, and the daughter of the girl’s late grandparents, Mark Winek, 69, and Sharie Winek, 65.

The girl is in the custody of Child Protective Services and is receiving trauma counseling, a family friend said.

Police said they are «not describing it as a kidnapping at this time.»

«We still don’t know if she was threatened, coerced,» Riverside police spokesman Ryan Railsback told reporters, adding that officials «have no reason to believe» she was involved in planning or carrying out the arson or the murderers.

Police are also investigating Edwards’ intent with the girl after the fire and murders, authorities said.

Authorities have not released a cause of death and autopsies have yet to be performed, said Railsback, who said police «have no reason to believe that a firearm was used to kill the victims.»

“It was very disturbing – we want to be sensitive to family members in how we describe to them and how their three loved ones are described to the public,” he added. «It was obvious they were killed. We know that.»

The Wineks’ bodies were discovered after officers were called to Riverside’s La Sierra South neighborhood shortly after 11 a.m. on Nov. 25. man, police said in a news release.

As officers responded, police began receiving calls about a structure fire just a few houses away.

The Riverside Fire Department arrived at the residence and found a fire on the first floor. When firefighters entered, they discovered three adults lying on the ground, police said.

“Their bodies were taken outside where it was determined they were victims of an apparent homicide,” the police department said, adding that firefighters were able to put out the fire.

Edwards was accused of running off with the girl after the murders. Authorities tracked down her car several hours after she was driving with her through San Bernardino County in the unincorporated area of ​​Kelso.

When San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputies caught up with Edwards, he shot them before at least one deputy fatally shot him, police said. Edwards was pronounced dead at the scene.

A Virginia State Police spokesperson said Edwards entered their academy on July 6, 2021, and graduated as a soldier on January 21. He was assigned to Henrico County, which is within the Richmond Division, the spokesman said, before resigning in October.

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Monday that deputies hired Edwards on November 16 and that he had «recently begun orientation for assignment to the patrol division.»

A spokesman for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a question about his position with the office.

Blandin and González urged parents Wednesday to talk to their children about the dangers of talking to strangers online.

«Please, parents, guardians, when you talk to your children about the dangers of their actions online, use us as a reference,» Blandin said. «Tell our story to help your parenting, not out of fear, but as an example of something that happened.»