A man in Pennsylvania has been accused of fatally shooting a children’s hospital nurse in what’s believed to have been a random act of violence just hours after he told police he was being followed.
Steve Jahn was charged with first-degree murder in the death of Megan Nieberle, the Chester County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement shared via Facebook.
Officers first came into contact with Jahn, 44, during a welfare check around 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 7, outside of a local bank, according to a probable cause arrest affidavit viewed by Law & Crime. The responding officer said that Jahn was displaying “frantic behavior,” and the defendant said he believed people were following him around.
Additionally, the affidavit noted that he was also carrying a 9 mm handgun at the time of the welfare check.
The responding officers suggested that Jahn go to a hospital to receive care, though noted he would have to surrender his weapons in order to do so. Jahn reportedly said he would drive to the hospital if he had an escort, so officers followed him there.
Once he arrived at the hospital, Jahn said the cars in the parking lot were the ones that had been chasing him. He then said he no longer wanted to go inside of the hospital and the officers were required to let him leave.
Two hours after they all left the hospital, officers responded to a car crash just four miles from the hospital. Upon their arrival, they found Nieberle slumped over the wheel with a gunshot wound to the head. She was rushed to the hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead.
Nieberle was a nurse at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and police said they believe the attack was random.
Investigators spoke to neighbors, who said they saw a man screaming before several gunshots were fired. Officers then reviewed license plate readers and learned that Jahn was in the area at the time of the shooting.
Officers found Jahn at a relative’s home a few hours later, and the relative said he came inside with a gun and a dashcam from his car before he went to sleep.
Jahn was then taken into custody and cops reviewed the dashcam footage from his car, which showed him ripping down the dash camera as cops approached him for the welfare check.
“I ain’t playing no more. I ain’t playing no more, motherf**kers,” he said as a gun was visible in his lap, per the affidavit.
Jahn allegedly made several unprovoked statements while in custody, including, “Is she dead, why am I in jail?” The affidavit also stated he allegedly said “none of this f**king happened” and that he would “definitely be in federal prison if I did this.”
“I pulled the trigger at the car, I definitely did that but I didn’t do anything else, what the f**k? Got me to admit that, can we move on to the next phase?” he allegedly said.
Jahn is currently in custody at the Chester County Jail and is being held without bond. He is next scheduled to appear in court on March 23.
It is not currently clear if Jahn has entered a plea or retained legal representation. The Chester County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment.
Following Jahn’s arrest, his friend told WCAU that he had recently started acting differently after he stopped taking his medication. The friend also noted that had a history of drug and alcohol addiction issues.
