NBC10 is learning more about the man accused of shooting and killing a woman in what investigators have described as a random act of violence in Chester County, Pennsylvania. On Saturday, March 8, 2026, around 8:30 p.m., 44-year-old Steve Christian Jahn drove to the PNC Bank on East Lancaster Ave nue in Paoli, Pennsylvania, and called 911, according to the criminal complaint. During the call, Jahn claimed he was being followed by multiple people, including undercover police officers, and that he had a loaded 9mm revolver, according to officials. When a Tredyffrin Township police officer arrived, they spotted Jahn in his pickup truck with his hands in the air, investigators said. Jahn frantically told the officer that there were people who were after him and following him, according to the criminal complaint. The officer told Jahn that he could commit himself to Paoli Hospital for a mental health evaluation but would need to surrender his weapon. Jahn – who had a legal permit to carry concealed firearms – refused to give up his gun but told the officer he would go to the hospital if he had an escort, according to the criminal complaint. Two officers then followed Jahn to Paoli Hospital. Once he arrived however, Jahn claimed the vehicles in the hospital parking lot were part of the group that was following him and refused to go inside, officials said. The officers then allowed Jahn to leave, according to the criminal complaint. Jahn then drove through the Berwyn and Tredyffrin Township area that night and even interacted with a man and his son after standing in their driveway, investigators said. Later that night, around 10:30 p.m., Jahn arrived at the 800 block of Contention Lane in Tredyffrin Township and shot a woman as she drove, causing her to crash into a pole, according to police. Neighbors found the woman slumped over the wheel of her vehicle. She was taken to Paoli Hospital where she was pronounced dead a day later. Officials have not released the woman’s name out of respect for her family’s privacy. “They are grieving,” Chester County District Attorney Chris de Barrena-Sarobe said during a press conference on Monday. “They need some time to process this unspeakable tragedy.” NBC10 learned the victim was a wife, mother and nurse who lived in the area where she was killed. Later Saturday night, Jahn went to a relative’s home along the 500 block of Conestoga Road in Berwyn, officials said. That relative contacted police and told them Jahn had showed up at their porch and brought weapons as well as a dashcam inside the home. After finding Jahn’s vehicle, police arrived at the home early Sunday morning and took Jahn into custody. Investigators obtained two weapons and a dashcam video which they said showed Jahn driving his vehicle with a gun in his lap on Saturday, hours before the deadly shooting. Jahn is charged with criminal homicide, first-degree murder, third-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime with intent. Officials have not revealed a possible motive in the shooting but said Jahn and the victim had no connection. At this point, investigators believe it was a random act of violence. Barrena-Sarobe also said there is no active threat to the Tredyffrin Township community. What we know about Steve Jahn NBC10 spoke with two of Jahn’s friends who wanted to remain anonymous. They said Jahn was homeless and battled drug and alcohol addictions. They also said he was a skilled contractor who had been struggling recently with keeping a job. According to his friends, Jahn was staying at a hotel in Chester County, had become paranoid and admitted to not taking medication. Despite his issues, his friends said they couldn’t imagine Jahn committing a murder.   “He is like unrecognizable from when I last saw him like a month and a half ago,” Jahn’s childhood friend told NBC10. “I’m shocked because Steve shooting a woman like that, a stranger, is like, it seems impossible.” The friends told NBC10 they had tried to help Jahn last year. “I was like, ‘Dude, you have some serious issues. You’re never going to be successful with people or in a job if you don’t get this taken care of,'” the friend said. Another friend said they had reached out to police shortly before Saturday’s shooting and expressed concerns over Jahn after he had asked him to do so. Some residents expressed outrage after learning that police interacted with Jahn more than two hours before he allegedly shot and killed the woman. Former prosecutor Dennis McAndrews told NBC10 the officers couldn’t have forced Jahn into the hospital when he refused to go, however. “They can’t just drag somebody through a hospital door until they meet the standards of the Mental Health Procedures Act,” McAndrews said. “Clear and present danger. Himself or others. Paranoia isn’t enough. Being armed in this society is not enough.” During his time as a prosecutor, McAndrews helped convict millionaire philanthropist John Du Pont of third-degree murder despite his defense team claiming insanity. In Jahn’s case, McAndrews said while lawyers can present an insanity defense, a jury will have to be convinced that he had no idea he was doing something wrong. “I think the jurors — having tried these cases — I think they have a lack of complete confidence that the system will care for this person and not release the person,” McAndrews said. “And in fact, the legal standards are, after a year, once the person is determined not to be a danger to himself or others, he has to be released if the verdict is not guilty by reason of insanity.” According to the criminal complaint, Jahn made several statements while he was in his holding cell following his arrest, including, “I pulled the trigger at the car. I definitely did that but I didn’t do anything else.” Jahn is currently being held in the Chester County Prison after his bail was denied. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 23, 2026. Online court records don’t list an attorney who could speak on his behalf. ...read more read less