Relatives Of California Family Killed By A Catfishing Cop Speak Out

Relatives of the family in California who was killed by a law enforcement officer after he catfished their teenage daughter spoke at an emotional news conference and pleaded with parents to be aware of their child’s online activity.

“Nobody could imagine this crime happening to my family, to our family,” Mychelle Blandin said. “Especially with it just being one day after Thanksgiving.”

The Wineks were an ordinary family who had just celebrated Thanksgiving together, where they had a heated debate about whether the homemade brownies would be better frosted or plain, Blandin said. The next day, while Blandin was out shopping for Christmas lights, she got a call from a neighbor saying her parents’ house was on fire.

“Sadly, we were too late to save my dad Mark, my mom Sharie, and my younger sister Brooke from that vicious crime. They are forever in my heart and I miss them deeply,” she said through tears.

Austin Edwards, a 28-year-old law enforcement officer, catfished Blandin’s niece by pretending to be a teen boy and traveled from Virginia to her home in Riverside, California, police said. He then set her home on fire and killed the girl’s grandparents and mom before fleeing with the girl. He was fatally shot by police after a pursuit.

The girl was taken into protective custody, and police said she is receiving “extensive medical treatment.”

“This horrific event started with an inappropriate online romance between a predator and a child,” Blandin said.

Blandin credited her neighbors with watching out for their family. Riverside police officers were dispatched on a welfare check on Friday after a girl was reported looking distressed while getting into a car with a man, according to authorities.

That call saved her niece’s life, Blandin said.