Suspect identified in connection with deadly home invasion in Lower Merion, Pennsylvania
A suspect was identified in connection with a home invasion in Lower Merion Township where a 25-year-old man was fatally shot and his mother was critically injured, according to the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele identified the suspect as Kelvin Roberts, 42, of Philadelphia, during a press conference Monday afternoon.
During a second press conference later Monday night, Steele said an arrest warrant had been issued for Roberts for the murder of Andrew Gaudio, 25, who was shot in the head.
Bernadette Gaudio, the 25-year-old's mother, was shot multiple times and remains in critical condition at Lankenau Medical Center, according to Steele.
Investigators believe Roberts is the suspect shown in the photo below previously released by police Sunday morning. In addition to this latest warrant, Roberts also has two other warrants out for his arrest: theft by receiving stolen property in North Wales and commercial burglary in Philadelphia, Steele said.
Police responded to the home invasion at around 2:20 a.m. Sunday in the unit block of Meredith Road in the township's Wynnewood section. According to Steele, Bernadette Gaudio, 61, called the police after she had been shot multiple times. Steele said they believe the suspects got into the house through the basement.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, when a Lower Merion Township police officer arrived at the home, he pulled in front of a white Hyundai Azera that was trying to leave the scene. The officer tried to block the Hyundai's way but the driver was able to veer out of the officer's direction and sped away.
The officer didn't yet know if this driver had been involved in the crimes committed at the home, so he didn't pursue the Hyundai any further, according to the affidavit.
However, the dash camera footage in the police vehicle caught a glimpse of the sole occupant in the white Hyundai, which is who you see in the photo above.
Investigators are looking for at least one other person of interest and a vehicle one of them used to escape. Officials didn't release the make and model of the vehicle but say a 2004 Green Jeep Cherokee, which was stolen during the home invasion, was recovered on Sunday.
Steele said search warrants were issued for an address on Samson Street in Philadelphia where the white Hyundai involved in the home invasion was registered. Investigators later recovered Bernadette Gaudio's jewelry box from the Samson Street home, according to the district attorney.
"The jewelry box is key in that it shows that they were in the house, they committed a burglary, a robbery, a home invasion, and we have the evidence of that in the jewelry box," Steele said.
Authorities are still working to figure out a motive in the case.
"We can't tell you specifically right now whether this was random or targeted, that's something that we are continuing to work on and explore," Steele said.
"You never think anything like this is going to happen like next door to you," neighbor Scott Richard said. "I just do not for the life of me understand how another person can take another person's life. I do not get it."
Richard said his thoughts are with the family and he's praying the mother makes a full recovery. He said he's known her for over 15 years.
"We all know each other. We all know everybody's kids. Whether it's the people across the street here or two doors down, or three doors down, or the street over. Everybody knows everybody," Richard said. "And when something like this happens, you are just like I don't understand and you definitely get a little scared."
"I just really hope the Lower Merion Police Department and the detectives involved figure out who did this, figure out why they did this, and apprehend them and get them off the streets because it's going to make everybody sleep a lot better," Richard said.
The Montgomery County DA's office is offering a $5,000 reward for information that can lead to an arrest in this case.
"We got one of the finest police departments here in — not just the state of Pennsylvania, but the country, and they're doing a great job with it and you know, stepped up patrols, doing all kinds of things to make sure that everybody is safe and I know that they'll continue to do that here," Steele said.
If you have any information that can help with the investigation, call Lower Merion Township Police at 610-645-6231 or the Montgomery County Detectives Bureau at 610-626-5553.
