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| Murder suspect Randle Lee Roberts, who had been staying with the family for several months, was killed by police on Saturday |
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An eight-year-old girl woke up to find her mother, sister and two other relatives had been shot dead while she slept.
The child awoke at her rural home near West Union, Ohio, on Saturday to find slain bodies in different rooms of the house and alerted a neighbour, who called the police.
When they arrived, Adams County Sheriff Kim Rogers said, cartoons were still playing on a television in the girl's room.
The suspect, relative Randle Lee Roberts, who had been staying with the family for several months, was killed by police, who did not know he was being sought for the quadruple homicide, in a shootout later that day.
Roberts, who was wanted for burglary charges, was killed in Columbus, about 90 miles from the southern Ohio town of West Union, after opening fire at officers who were pursuing him by chance.
Court records show Roberts, 27, faced felony charges of burglary and receiving stolen property late last year and failed to appear in court.
Investigators learned Roberts, who had been staying in the girl's room, had told her on Friday night that she could sleep in her own room and he'd take the couch instead.
'We were unaware he was here,' Rogers said. 'I don't know what set him off.'
The neighbours heard nothing, and there were no signs of a struggle, the sheriff said.
The girl's 34-year-old mother, Kendra Stephens, and 11-year-old sister, Harley, were found in one bedroom.
The door to a second bedroom was locked, so authorities broke through a window to find 46-year-old Sonja Stephens dead in bed.
In the living room, upright in a chair, they found 68-year-old George Stephens, grandfather of Roberts' wife. Authorities are trying to clarify how the others are related.
Investigators believe they were shot with a semi-automatic weapon but still are evaluating evidence.
Several weapons were taken from the shootout scene and authorities were trying to sort out which ones belonged to police and which was used by Roberts.
Roberts had a concealed-carry permit from Franklin County that had expired in January, authorities said.
People coming out of a Sunday service at Bible Baptist Church, across the street from the Stephens' home, conveyed a feeling of reverence and turned grim-faced when asked about what happened. Several said it wasn't appropriate to discuss such things on a Sunday.
Investigators interviewing neighbours had quickly learned Saturday that Roberts had stayed at the home but was from Columbus and that his wife worked in that area, so they called police there.
'At that point, they didn't know we were looking for him, and we didn't know he was involved in a shootout,' Rogers said.
As Adams County authorities were beginning their investigation, police in Columbus had responded to two calls about shots fired into homes and ended up pursuing a vehicle driven by Roberts.
He crashed the two-tone pickup truck in a residential area, fired at the officer chasing him and ran off, evading authorities for more than 10 minutes before a shootout erupted at about 11am, police Sgt. Rich Weiner said.
Roberts had tattoos that helped authorities in both areas confirm they were talking about the same man.
Three officers were shot in the exchange and were treated for injuries that weren't life-threatening.
Another man who was shot also was hospitalised with injuries that weren't life-threatening. Police said the man was related to Roberts but didn't say how. He wasn't charged.
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