CLAY COUNTY, Fla.— Surveillance footage of an abduction that led to a triple murder in Green Cove Springs was released on Wednesday, less than 24 hours after its conclusion.
The video shows Murray Lancaster, 40, entering the Keeping It Classy Hair & Nail Saloon and forcing one of his eventual victims into his pickup truck.
That victim, Valorie Short, and her father Welland 'Buddy' Short, were shot and killed near Magnolia Point Golf off Colonial Drive shortly after that footage was recorded, according to police.
Lancaster was later found dead inside a trailer off Idlewild Avenue in Green Cove Springs after shooting and killing Short, her father and Lancaster's ex-wife.
At 9:45 a.m., Lancaster reportedly kidnapped Valorie, his girlfriend, from a nail salon she worked at on Orange Avenue in Green Cove Springs across from the Clay County Courthouse.
He lured Buddy Short to them on Magnolia West. According to Clay County Sheriff Rick Beseler, he shot and killed both Valorie and Buddy Short there.
Then Lancaster drove to the landfill on Rosemary Hill Road and then killed one of his ex-wives, Erica Green. She was at work at the landfill at the time.
Beseler said that after that Lancaster fled to a trailer on his property off Idlewild Avenue where he shot himself, which was later confirmed as a suicide. Investigators said he was likely dead before SWAT surrounded his property.
A manhunt ensued for several hours after the shootings, and eventually authorities found his pickup and rifle they said they believe he used in the shooting, a .223-caliber rifle.
According to a friend, Valorie Short had two children, aged 7 and 9.
In March, Lancaster was arrested for battery and resisting arrest after getting into a fight with Buddy Short at his house. The police report showed that Lancaster was intoxicated and kept yelling obscenities at Buddy Short.
Lancaster has also been arrested for violating a court ordered restraining order against one of his former girlfriends.
Before his death, Lancaster reportedly tried to go to his kids' school to "say good-bye" at Charles Bennett Elementary. His children were not harmed, Beseler said.
Multiple public schools were shut down for the duration of the investigation, including Clay High School, Green Cove Springs Junior High and Charles Bennett Elementary.
On Wednesday, the principal of Charles Bennett, Shelley Lester, released a statement saying that school counselors and the district's Crisis Response Team worked with students and staff to support them after the horrific shootings.
"We are all saddened by the events that unfolded yesterday and we will work together as a family to preserve," Lester said.
Dismissal for all schools was unusual for those schools affected, as authorities had to shut down several main roads throughout the area during their investigation.
R.C. Bannerman Learning Center and Crossroads Christian School were also placed on lockdown during the investigation.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and the FBI offered their assistance. Florida Highway Patrol was called into assist with road closures.
State Road 16 and County Road 215 were shutdown for the duration of the investigation, causing traffic delays throughout north Clay County.
Lancaster is the nephew of former Clay County Sheriff Scott Lancaster and is related to longtime former county commissioner Larry Lancaster.
Until last week, Murray Lancaster worked at the Georgia-Pacific Mill in Palatka. A spokesperson would not say why he was fired, but did say he made death threats against the mill. Between 250-300 people were at the mill Tuesday while the place was put on lockdown after the earlier triple-murder.
On Thursday, the autopsy was completed on all three victims; each was shot multiple times, police said.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to pay for the funeral costs of Valorie and "Buddy" Short. To donate, click here.
Along with the GoFundMe page, Keeping It Classy Hair & Nail Salon, where Valorie worked, will host a vigil on Wednesday for the victims.
Vigil for all 3 victims will be at 6pm at the hair salon. This is the message they posted to their FB page: @FCN2go pic.twitter.com/WBbs608tEN
— Shelby Danielsen (@NewsShelby) May 4, 2016