Survivors Of Riverside Family Murdered By Catfishing Cop File Lawsuit

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A "catfishing" cop who killed three members of a Riverside County family last Thanksgiving holiday after flashing his badge to gain entry into their home, and then kidnapping an underage girl who resided there, should not have been hired by law enforcement due to his history of mental illness and violence, according to a lawsuit filed Thursday.

The complaint against the Washington County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia comes nearly a year after Deputy Austin Lee Edwards, 28, murdered 38-year-old Brooke Winek, and her parents, 69-year-old Mark Winek and 65-year-old Sharie Winek in their Riverside home the day after Thanksgiving 2022.

Edwards then set the house on fire and kidnapped Brooke Winek's teenage daughter by forcing her into his car. He died during a shootout with San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department deputies later that day, though an investigation determined his death was from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The 15-year-old girl was safely rescued.

Attorneys David Ring and Neil Gehlawat of Taylor & Ring, and Attorney Alison Saros of Saros Law, filed the complaint against the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and Edwards' estate for negligent hiring, wrongful death, deprivation of rights and violation of California's Bane Act. The complaint was filed on behalf of Mark and Sharie Winek's surviving daughter, Mychelle Blandin. A second surviving minor child of Brooke Winek, identified in court papers as "B.W.," is also listed as a plaintiff.

“Edwards never should have been hired by the sheriff’s department. He was barred by the courts from owning or possessing a gun because of his mental illness and because he was a clear danger to the community,” said lead attorney David Ring. “He used his position as a sheriff’s deputy and the gun they gave him to kill these innocent victims.”

Co-counsel Alison Saros added, “Our law enforcement agencies and their process for screening new hires must be held to the highest standards. These individuals are meant to protect us, but the sheriff’s office failed to follow the proper processes. Sadly, the Winek family has suffered irreparable tragedy.”

Edwards of Chesterfield, Va., worked as a Virginia State Police officer before he was hired as a deputy for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, a position he held at the time of the Winek family slayings. Following the killings, both law enforcement agencies said no red flags were raised during their hiring and subsequent employment of Edwards.

But Edwards' past raises questions about the vetting processes of the Virginia law enforcement agencies.

According to a police report obtained by the Los Angeles Times, in the early morning hours after the 2016 Super Bowl, police were called to Edwards' home in Abingdon, Va.

Edwards' father, Christopher Roy Edwards, told police he awoke because his then-21-year-old son was making noise in a bathroom. The elder Edwards used a screwdriver to get the locked bathroom door open and found his son with a cut hand — and knives and a small hatchet nearby, the Times reported.

Police were called because of Austin Edwards’ “resistance to medical aid and attempts to escape his father’s control,” according to the Times.

There was also a scuffle between the two men around the time of the Super Bowl. At one point, Austin Edwards tried to leave the home, but his father subdued him in the kitchen, according to the Times.

Christopher Edwards had bite marks on both his arms from his son, the Times reported.

Following the bathroom incident, the younger Edwards resisted authorities, so he was handcuffed, placed on a stretcher and sent to a local hospital. He told police he was going to kill himself and his father once the cuffs were off, the Times reported.

Because of his suicidal and homicidal statements, an emergency custody order was issued for Austin Edwards and a temporary detention order followed, according to the newspaper.

About five years later, on July 6, 2021, Austin Edwards entered the Virginia State Police Academy. He graduated Jan. 21, 2022, as a trooper and was assigned to Henrico County, within the Richmond Division, according to a statement from Virginia State Police.

Edwards resigned Oct. 28, 2022, and started as a patrol deputy with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office on Nov. 16, 2022. He started orientation and was assigned to the patrol division at the time of the Nov. 25, 2022, Riverside killings, according to the sheriff's office.

"Past employers and the Virginia State Police were contacted during the hiring processing; however, no employers disclosed any troubles, reprimands, or internal investigations pertaining to Edwards," according to a Nov. 28, 2022, sheriff's office statement.

Virginia State Police also issued a statement last November: "... the Virginia State Police utilizes standardized performance evaluations for all sworn employees, which includes a personnel early intervention system. As a probationary employee, Edwards was also given monthly performance evaluations, in accordance with department policy. During Edwards' short tenure with the department, he never exhibited any behaviors to trigger any internal administrative or criminal investigations.

"The Virginia State Police also conducts a thorough background check as part of its mandatory hiring process for entry into the academy. That background check requires passage of written, psychological, and physical testing, as well as a pre-employment polygraph. At no time during that extensive process were there any indicators of concern," the agency said.

In December 2022, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin requested his state’s inspector general look into Edwards' hiring.

Edwards was clearly troubled. Prior to the killings, he adopted the online persona of a 17-year-old boy in order to lure Brooke Winek's 15-year-old daughter, identified in court papers as "R.W."

Despite the distance between California and Virginia, Edwards cultivated an online relationship with the girl using his fake profile. He sent romantic messages to R.W. and learned personal information about her, according to the complaint.

The morning of Nov. 25. 2022, he arrived at the Winek home on Price Court, parked his red Kia Soul, and walked to the residence, Riverside police reported.

"Edwards gained entry to the home by identifying himself as a law enforcement officer, displaying his law enforcement badge and service weapon, and falsely claiming that he was conducting a law enforcement investigation," according to the complaint.

Only Mark and Sharon Winek were home. Acting as an official investigator, Edwards instructed Sharon to call her daughter, Brooke. When she answered the phone, her mother told her there was a detective at the home who was there to ask questions about a prior incident involving R.W. Sharon told her daughter the detective wanted Brooke and R.W. to come home immediately, the complaint alleges.

Brooke complied with Edwards' requests, including that when she arrived home she should go inside for questioning while R.W. remain in her mother's vehicle for separate interrogation.

After some time passed, R.W. decided to go in the home. Once inside, she discovered Edwards "had murdered her mother by slitting her throat," according to the complaint.

He also murdered R.W.'s grandparents. "Her grandparents were both hogtied with bags over their heads, but at least one of them was still moving when R.W. entered the home," according to the complaint. Their death certificates show they died by asphyxiation.

Edwards then set the house on fire and kidnapped R.W. at gunpoint with his service weapon.

Following a law enforcement chase and gun battle in the Mojave Desert, Edwards died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound on the same day as the killings.

According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs seek damages to be determined at trial. Attorneys’ fees are also sought. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court.