BUTLER TWP, Ohio (WDTN) — The man accused of shooting and killing four people in a Butler Township neighborhood earlier this month is facing nine additional charges.
Thirty-nine-year-old Stephen Marlow was originally charged with eight counts of aggravated murder, four counts of aggravated burglary and one count of having weapons under disability.
Court records filed Tuesday, August 23 show that Marlow now faces four additional counts of aggravated murder (prior calculation/design), four additional counts of aggravated burglary and one count of tampering with evidence.
The victims of the shooting were identified as 82-year-old Clyde Knox, 78-year-old Eva Knox, 41-year-old Sarah Anderson and her 15-year-old daughter Kayla.
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Court documents state that on Friday, August 5 at approximately 11:35 a.m., Marlow walked into an open, attached garage on Hardwicke Place and shot Sarah Anderson multiple times. He then walked into the home, located Kayla Anderson in the kitchen, and fatally shot her several times. As he walked back out into the garage, he noticed that Sarah was still moving. He then fired a single shot in the back of her head, killing her.
A home security camera located in the Anderson’s garage captured and depicted Marlow shooting Sarah, enter the home to murder Kayla, then exit the home approximately 12 seconds later to murder Sarah.
A witness watched Marlow exit the garage and spoke to him. The witness stated that Marlow holstered a gun and threatened him. The witness later was able to positively identify Marlow in a photo lineup.
After murdering Sarah and Kayla Anderson, Marlow entered a detached garage on the same street near the Anderson residence, where he fatally shot Clyde and Eva Knox.
A witness stated that he heard gunshots and looked out the window to see Marlow getting into a white Ford SUV. The witness took note of the license plate number and immediately went to check on his neighbors, Clyde and Eva Knox, finding them deceased in the garage.
Marlow then fled the scene in a white Ford SUV and drove to his home address where he lived with his parents on Haverstraw Avenue.
A search warrant was later executed on the Haverstraw Avenue residence. During that search, a manifesto was found on a computer believed to be Marlow’s.
The manifesto was typed out, and in it, Marlow states his name, address and life story. He spoke of conspiracy theories and believing that his neighbors were terrorists engaged in the mind control of others. He said that he believed it to be one of the greatest crimes against humanity in history. In addition, crews found “bomb-making” criteria in his Internet search history.
Later in the evening, Marlow released a pre-recorded video stating that he was going to launch, “The first counterattack against mind control in history”. He specified that it would not be an active shooter incident, but instead he would target and “execute” only those responsible. He expressed his desire to encourage other “targeted individuals” and made it clear that this was a cause he was prepared to die for.
On August 6, it was discovered that Stephen had a storage unit located on North Dixie Drive. Surveillance shows Marlow entering the property on the day of the incident at 11:12 a.m. and exiting the unit at 11:27 a.m., just minutes before the murders took place.
A search warrant was executed on his storage unit. Inside, crews located an empty gun case that would normally store an AR-15 style rifle, handgun and rifle ammunition, a manual for an AR-15 high-capacity drum magazine, an empty box for a long-range rifle scope, rifle magazines that loaded and empty, and some writings on warfare.
Later in the evening on August 6, Marlow was located and arrested in Lawrence, Kansas, where he was interviewed by the FBI. During that interview, Marlow stated that he knew he could not possess any firearms due to his prior aggravated burglary charge. He deliberately circumvented this by traveling to Kentucky and meeting a private seller to obtain the firearms.
Marlow admitted that his motive for buying the firearms was to carry out his attack against the individuals who he believed to be a part of this “terrorist cell”. He stated that he stored the firearms in his storage unit to conceal them from his mother until the day of the murders.
On August 17, Marlow was extradited back to Ohio. On the way back, he was interviewed by police. He asked if his manifesto was received and repeated much of the same information that was provided during the initial interview.
When asked if he had additional targets, Marlow said that he did not want to talk about it on camera. When asked for a reason for his killings, Marlow stated that it was an act of self-defense to protect his family, and for the purpose of “exposure”.
According to police, when asked how he felt about everything, he said something to the effect of, “For me, it was an easy decision.”
Marlow remains booked in the Montgomery County Jail. His next court date has not been scheduled.
