The "Maryvale Serial Shooter", also known as the "Serial Street Shooter", is a still unidentified serial/spree killer active in Phoenix, Arizona, from 2015 to 2016. He has been linked to 12 shootings, 9 of which were fatal. In April 2017, a young man named Aaron Saucedo was arrested on charges of killing the first victim of the series, and is currently awaiting trial on charges of perpetrating the entire killing spree.
Phoenix Serial Shootings[]
Composite sketch of the Maryvale Serial Shooter.
From August 2015 to July 2016, for almost a year, the city of Phoenix, Arizona, was affected by a series of seemingly random shootings, which mostly occurred in Maryvale, an urban village. The shooter approached his victims, either by foot or by car, and shot them at close range. By the time of the last known shooting, nine people were dead, and at least two other had been injured by gunfire.
Investigation[]
At first, the authorities investigated the incidents individually, though they later linked all the cases together and formed a task force in order to catch the so-called "Serial Street Shooter". Witness reports described the killer as being a lanky, dark-haired, Latino man in his twenties, as well as driving both a black BMW and a white Cadillac or Lincoln. Though deemed unlikely, police could not exclude the possibility of multiple individuals being behind the murders, as more than one person was seen walking away from at least two crime scenes. A composite sketch of the shooter was also released.
Arrest of Aaron Saucedo[]
Eventually, on April 22, 2017, 23-year-old Latino Aaron Saucedo was arrested on charges of murdering the first fatal victim of the series: 61-year-old Raul Romero, who was also a friend of his mother. A 9mm Hi-Point pistol owned by Saucedo was confirmed, by ballistics experts, to be the same weapon that killed Romero. Also, Saucedo bore a resemblance to the composite sketch of the serial shooter, and drove a black BMW 5 Series sedan, exactly the same type of car reportedly driven by the killer. After he was pointed out in a lineup by a surviving victim of the series, Saucedo was charged with all the other murders attributed to the "Maryvale Serial Shooter", to which he pleaded not guilty. He is currently awaiting trial.
Suspects[]
Frank Taylor.
- Frank Taylor (1989 - 2017)
- Similar to the shooter's composite sketch
- Was killed by a woman he was attempting to rob a few weeks after the last known shooting
- Identified by several people after his death, and briefly considered as a suspect in March 2017
Aaron Saucedo.
- Aaron Juan Saucedo (1994)
- Similar to the shooter's composite sketch
- Fit witness descriptions and behavioral profile
- Drove a black BMW 5 Series sedan, exactly the same type of vehicle driven by the shooter
- Arrested on charges of killing the very first victim of the series, Raul Romero, who was a friend of his mother
- Currently awaiting trial on charges of perpetrating the shootings
Modus Operandi[]
A 9mm Hi-Point C-9, similar to the one employed by Saucedo in the Romero shooting.
The shooter approached his victims and shot them at close range with a semiautomatic pistol. In some occasions, he committed drive-by shootings. In at least two instances, he yelled at his victims to make them watch as he was going to shot them, which seems to be part of his signature.
Profile[]
Former FBI profiler Brad Garrett profiled the shooter as being a thrill killer seeking "intimacy" in his close-range attacks. He also claimed the attacker wanted to inflict as much fear as possible in his victims, by making them watch as he shot them. While it was deemed unlikely by him that he had accomplices, Garrett said, it would be an explanation for his apparent access to multiple vehicles (based on witnesses recollection). Finally, as a means to keep up the thrill by taking more risks, the shooter was probably inserting himself in the investigation, atteding police-community meetings.
Known Victims[]
The Maryvale Serial Shooter's fatal victims. From left to right: Raul Romero, Jesse Olivas, Diego Verdugo-Sanchez, Krystal Annette White, Horacio De Jesus Pena, Manuel Castro Garcia, Stefanie Ellis, Maleah Ellis, Angela Linner.
All the attacks occurred in Phoenix, Arizona.
- 2015:
- August 12: East Colter Street and North 8th Place: a victimless shooting
- August 16: East Bethany Home Road and North 7th Street: Raul Romero, 61 (was shot multiple times; later died at the hospital)
- 2016:
- January 1: West Monte Vista Road and North 58th Drive, Maryvale: Jesse Olivas, 22 (shot to death)
- March 17: East Moreland Street and North 11th Street: an unnamed 16-year-old boy (survived; was shot)
- March 18: West Heatherbrae Drive and North 73rd Avenue, Maryvale: an unnamed 21-year-old man (survived; was shot)
- April 1: West Turney Avenue and North 55th Avenue, Maryvale: Diego Verdugo-Sanchez, 21 (shot to death)
- April 19: North 32nd Street: Krystal Annette White, 55 (shot to death)
- June 3: West Flower Street and North 67th Avenue, Maryvale: Horacio De Jesus Pena, 32 (shot to death)
- June 10: West Coronado Road, Maryvale: Manuel Castro Garcia, 19 (shot to death)
- June 12:
- 2:35 AM: West Mariposa Drive and North 62nd Avenue, Maryvale: a victimless shooting
- 3:00 AM: West Berkeley Road, Maryvale (all shot):
- Stefanie Ellis, 33
- Maleah Ellis, 12 (Stefanie's daughter)
- Angela Linner, 31 (survived; died at the hospital three weeks later)
- July 11: North 32nd and East Oak Street (both survived without injuries; both were shot at):
- An unnamed 21-year-old man
- An unnamed 4-year-old boy
On Criminal Minds[]
- Season Thirteen:
- "Neon Terror" - While the Shooter was never directly referenced in the show, the case may have provided some inspiration for the episode's unsub, Jeffrey Whitfield - Both are serial/spree killers who killed victims of both genders but primarily targeted one (men in the Shooter's case, women in Whitfield's), killed them by shooting them with a handgun, had some infatuation with media attention of their crimes (possibly in the Shooter's case), were given nicknames, Whitfield and Aaron Saucedo (the main suspect in the Shooter case) were in their 20s when they committed their crimes (and additionally the Shooter was described by witness as being in his 20s), and killed exactly nine victims.