Man kidnaps girlfriend, 1-year-old; all 3 found dead

CLEVELAND — A wanted man kidnapped his estranged girlfriend at gunpoint along with her 1-year-old whom she was pushing in a stroller, Cleveland police said Sunday, and all three were found shot dead hours later.

Police said the couple had dated for about two months and that the woman, Latasha Jackson, 19, was trying to end the relationship.

Ms. Jackson was walking with her daughter, Chaniya Wynn, and Ms. Jackson’s 14-year-old brother around noon Saturday when they encountered the man, Thomas Lorde. The teen said Lorde pulled out a gun and ordered him to walk away, according to police.

The girl’s father told police Lorde said he was going to kill Ms. Jackson and take the child.

Their bodies were found early Sunday in a closed garage of an unoccupied building, said police Sgt. Sammy Morris, and it appeared that Lorde shot himself in the head.

The county coroner was to determine the causes of death.

In an Amber Alert for Ms. Jackson and her daughter, Lorde was described as a violent sexual predator with outstanding felony warrants in New York. A phone number for his last known address, in Cleveland, could not be found.

Telephone messages seeking comment from family members of Jackson and Wynn were not immediately returned.