East Lansdowne man who shot at police, set house ablaze, killed himself and four relatives with the same gun, DA says
Canh Le shot his brother, sister-in-law and two of their children on Feb. 7 before turning the gun on himself, police said. The couple's youngest died from smoke inhalation.
Five of the six family members who perished in a shooting and house fire in East Lansdowne earlier this month died of gunshot wounds, Delaware County officials said Wednesday, including the man who opened fire at police officers after turning the gun on his relatives and then set the family home ablaze.
Canh Le, 43, shot his brother, sister-in-law, and two of their three children Feb. 7 with a 5.56mm rifle before using the weapon to take his own life, police said. The couple’s son died of smoke inhalation.
What led Le to do that will forever be lost to the raging inferno that consumed their home.
“Nobody has come forward and provided anything that would explain what happened that day,” Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer said at a news conference Wednesday a few blocks from the charred Lewis Avenue lot where the family’s home once stood.
“I think Canh Le took the ‘why’ to his grave.”
Still, amid those unanswered questions, officials are officially closing the investigation, now that the man responsible, and his victims, have been fully identified and accounted for.
Dental records and DNA testing have confirmed that those who died along with Le were his 40-year-old brother, Xuong Le; Xuong’s wife, Britni McLaughlin Le, 37; and the couple’s children: Natalya, 17; Nakayla, 14; and Xavier, 10.
In interviews with Canh Le’s parents, investigators learned that his father, Huong Le, made the initial 911 call to police from within the home, screaming for help as gunfire could be heard in the background.
He made that call, Stollsteimer said, after his older son got into an argument with Nakayla and, in a fit of anger, retrieved a Diamondback D15 rifle from his second-floor bedroom. Investigators found that Le had legally purchased the gun in July 2020 from a gun store in Norwood.
He then shot the 14-year-old, authorities said, as his parents fled in a panic.
Stollsteimer said it was unclear what the two were arguing about.
“Nobody knows what, nobody knows why, and we’ll never be able to answer those questions,” the DA said.
After shooting the four other members of his family, Le went to the third-floor attic and opened fire from a window at two officers who had responded to the 911 call, hoping, Stollsteimer said, to rescue his niece.
East Lansdowne Police Officer John Meehan, 44, was shot in the left arm, and Lansdowne Police Officer David Shiazza, 54, was wounded in his leg. They were dragged to safety by other officers from Upper Darby as Le continued to fire.
Even while wounded, Meehan was able to reload his gun with his other arm and return fire at Le, officials said.
» READ MORE: After the tragedy in East Lansdowne, the Le family’s loved ones find solace in memories
Both officers were later released from Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, and are home recovering with their families. It remained unclear whether Meehan, who requires more medical care, will return to work, but Schiazza has indicated an early desire to get back on duty, according to Lansdowne Police Chief Ken Rutherford.
“From our perspective, the police response was absolutely fantastic, if not heroic,” Stollsteimer said. “It should be taught in police academies.”
After shooting the officers, Le lit a fire on the third floor that quickly spread throughout the home and enveloped it in flames. Investigators were unsure how he set the fire, or what accelerants he used.
“This is an absolute, unmitigated tragedy,” Stollsteimer said. “The Le family came here from South Vietnam to build a better life, and for some reason, in one fell swoop, everything they had built was taken away from them.”
No mental-health concerns about Le had been reported to police or other authorities by his family, according to Stollsteimer. His only previous interaction with police was in 2006, when he got into a dispute with an employee at the now-shuttered Toys R Us at Granite Run Mall and told the officers who detained them that he would return to the store to attack the employee.
An initial charge of making terroristic threats was later reduced to summary offenses of defiant trespassing and disorderly conduct, for which Le entered a diversionary program for first-time offenders. He completed the program in 2007, according to court records.
As investigators finalize their case, the East Lansdowne community continues to mourn the loss of the family, including three bright, outgoing students who were active in the William Penn School District.
East Lansdowne Mayor Majovi Bland said the borough is partnering with the Red Cross and the school district to host a “community healing event” on March 9, offering resources for families including behavioral health and crisis help.
“We’re still hurting,” he said. “And the healing process will take a very, very long time.”
Staff writer Oona Goodin-Smith contributed to this article.