Police: Knightdale man used 'assault-type weapon' in incest case killings

NEW MILFORD, CT (WNCN) - A Knightdale man used an "assault-type weapon" to shoot his daughter and her adoptive father before killing himself, New Milford Police Chief Shawn Boyne said.

Around 8:40 a.m. on Thursday, Steven Pladl, 45, pulled up next to the victims' vehicle at Highway 55 and Route 7 in New Milford, Connecticut, and fired several rounds from a rifle into that vehicle, Boyne said.

"New York (authorities) identified it as an Aero assault-type rifle, similar to an AR-15," Boyne said.

Katie Pladl and Anthony Fusco were inside that vehicle and were killed, police said.

Katie Pladl, 20, was Steven's biological daughter and mother to their 7-month-old child, Bennett, Knightdale police said.

Anthony Fusco adopted Katie in 1998.

After killing his daughter and Fusco, police said Steven Pladl drove across the state line into New York and shot and killed himself while inside his vehicle.

Boyne said it is believed Steven Pladl was already dead when authorities located his vehicle.

"They did not hear him shoot himself. It can only be presumed that he was dead upon their arrival," Boyne said.

Around 9 a.m. Thursday, Bennett Pladl was found dead in the Knightdale home the couple shared until their arrest on charges of incest, police said.

Steven's mother, who lives in Cary, called 911 Thursday morning.

"My son just called me and, ah, he told me he.. oh my God.. He killed his baby and he's in the house," a woman, identified by police as Pladl's mother, told dispatchers.

Police said Pladl's mother had custody of the child, and that Steve picked up the baby from her Wednesday night.

"His wife broke up with him yesterday over the phone," Steven's mother said in a 911 recording. "She's in New York and he told me he was on his way and after bringing the baby to her and then he was coming back."

According to court documents, Katie was staying with her adoptive family in New York after she bonded out of jail in Virginia.

"He killed his wife. He killed her father and I can't even believe this is happening," the woman tells the dispatcher.

In January, Steven and Katie Pladl were each charged with incest with adult, adultery, and contributing to delinquency after investigators said they had a child together.

Pladl bonded out of jail in March, but was prohibited from having contact with Katie, according to court documents.

His bond was amended to allow him to return to North Carolina.

Katie Rose Pladl was born in January 1998 to Steven Walter Pladl and her mother, and then legally adopted out of state.

When Katie Pladl turned 18, she used social media to reach out to her biological parents and even moved in with the couple and their two children in their home outside of Richmond, Virginia, according to warrants.

Steven Pladl eventually left his wife to be with Katie, warrants say.

At some point after May 31, 2017, Katie and Steven Pladl moved to Wake County. Warrants say their child was born in September 2017.

"We are heartbroken, and saddened over the death of this child and like you, we are trying to make sense of all the factors that led up to this senseless taking of life," said Knightdale Police Chief Lawrence Capps.

Capps said Pladl drove to the New York "for the specific purpose of making some confrontations." However, he wouldn't elaborate on what transpired, only saying his department is working with police in Connecticut and New York to try to piece together what happened.

Capps said he would not release how the baby was killed as it is still part of the homicide investigation.