The mother and daughter were found shot inside a burning East Mount Airy home before an armed man barricaded himself on a SEPTA bus.
PHILADELPHIA — Two women identified by relatives as a mother and daughter died after they were found shot inside a burning Philadelphia home early Monday, and a man authorities believed could be connected to their deaths later died after an hourslong armed standoff on a SEPTA bus, police and local reports said.
The shootings, fire and standoff unfolded across two Philadelphia neighborhoods on Oct. 12 and remained under investigation Monday night. Family members identified the women as 78-year-old Sadie Turner and her daughter, Gaby Turner, who was in her early 20s. Relatives identified the armed man as 26-year-old Lonnie Turner and described him as Sadie Turner’s adopted son and Gaby Turner’s brother. Police had not publicly announced a motive.
Philadelphia firefighters responded shortly before 4 a.m. to a house in the 8200 block of Williams Avenue in East Mount Airy, an area also described in some reports as Cedarbrook. Emergency dispatchers were receiving reports of both a fire and a shooting at the property. First responders entered the burning house and found two women who had been shot, authorities said.
The women were removed from the home and taken to Jefferson Einstein Philadelphia Hospital, where both were pronounced dead. Police said the victims had suffered gunshot wounds. Early reports said both had been shot in the head. The fire was brought under control at about 4:30 a.m. Authorities had not publicly determined what caused the fire or whether it had been deliberately set.
About an hour after the fire response began, police were called to the Fox Chase area after an armed man refused to leave a SEPTA Route 18 bus. SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch told The Philadelphia Inquirer that the bus arrived at the Fox Chase Loop with the operator, the man and another passenger aboard. The other passenger left without incident, and the operator also got off after calling for assistance.
The armed man remained alone on the bus as police surrounded the area and negotiators worked for hours to end the barricade. Streets near the transit loop were closed, and SEPTA service was diverted. Police said no officers were injured during the response. Authorities described the man as someone they believed might be connected to the earlier double homicide, while investigators continued working to establish exactly what had happened at the Williams Avenue home.
Family members later identified the man as Lonnie Turner. Relatives told local television stations that Sadie Turner was his adopted mother and Gaby Turner was his sister. Police did not immediately release the man’s identity through an official announcement, and investigators had not detailed publicly what evidence connected him to the deaths. No criminal case was filed before the standoff ended.
The barricade continued through much of Monday before ending shortly after 5 p.m. Police said the armed man suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound and was taken to a hospital, where he died. His death left investigators to reconstruct the events leading to the shootings, determine the relationship between the two scenes and establish whether the house fire was connected to the killings.
Relatives and neighbors described the deaths as a severe blow to the family and the East Mount Airy community. NBC10 reported that neighbors said residents on the block knew one another and were shaken by the violence. Authorities had not released additional details about the victims through official channels by Monday night, leaving some information about their identities and family relationships based on statements from relatives to local news organizations.
The investigation also focused on the timeline between the early-morning fire and the confrontation several miles away. Firefighters were dispatched to Williams Avenue shortly after 3:40 a.m., while the SEPTA bus reached the Fox Chase area around 5 a.m. Police continued examining whether actions during that period could clarify what happened before the women were found and how the armed man came to be aboard the bus.
Investigators had not announced a motive, disclosed whether a weapon recovered during the standoff was linked to the shootings or released a final determination on the cause of the fire as of Monday night. Police and fire officials continued investigating the deaths, the blaze and the bus standoff as connected or potentially connected parts of the same developing case.
Author note: Last updated October 12, 2026.