MESA, Ariz. (AP) - An ex-convict accused of shooting and killing one person and wounding five others in a Phoenix suburb made his first...
MESA, Ariz. (AP) - An ex-convict accused of shooting and killing one person and wounding five others in a Phoenix suburb made his first court appearance Thursday as authorities tried to figure out what triggered the rampage that led to an intense, hourslong hunt for the gunman.
Mesa police said the string of crimes Wednesday included a motel shooting, a carjacking and a home invasion and ended with 41-year-old Ryan Giroux's arrest Wednesday at a vacant apartment.
Giroux was jailed Thursday on suspicion of murder and numerous other crimes, including armed robbery, kidnaping and aggravated assault. A judge ordered Giroux held in lieu of $2 million bond.
This undated booking photo provided by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office shows Ryan Giroux, 41, who Mesa police say committed a string of crimes that included a motel shooting, a carjacking and a home invasion that ended with the suspect's arrest on Wednesday, March 18, 2015. Police said the motive for the initial shooting at the motel was unclear but the other three shootings appeared motivated by robbery and the suspect's attempt to flee. (AP Photo/Maricopa County Sheriff's Office)
He was taken into custody after officers spotted him on an apartment balcony and hit him with a stun gun. Numerous officers led the handcuffed man to a truck parked outside the apartment complex.
Police later identified him as Giroux, who has served three stints in state prison since 1994.
An undated mug shot from the Arizona Department of Corrections shows him with several face and neck tattoos, including the word "skinhead" where his eyebrows normally would be. A newly released mug shot shows a bloodied and scraped up Giroux without many of his facial tattoos visible.
Police said in a court document that Giroux sustained minor facial and other injuries while resisting arrest and struggling with officers.
The police document also summarized statements in which two witnesses said a man was with Giroux when Giroux fired into a motel room. One of the witnesses, a resident of the motel, said the unidentified companion grabbed Giroux by the shirt "and told him they needed to leave the area," the document said.
Mesa police did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the witnesses' statements.
Efforts to identify a lawyer representing Giroux who could comment on the allegations against him were not immediately successful.
During the court appearance, the judge declared Giroux indigent and said he was appointing a lawyer to represent Giroux. A court spokesman said court records indicated Giroux would be represented by the Maricopa County Public Defender's Office. Amanda Martin, an office supervisor, declined to confirm that the office represents Giroux or to comment on his case.
Police said the motive for the initial shooting at the motel was unclear, but the other three shootings appeared motivated by robbery and the suspect's attempt to flee.
The shootings started with an argument inside a motel room that spilled outside, leaving one man dead and two women wounded, Mesa police Detective Esteban Flores said.
The gunman then shot a man working at a nearby restaurant. The adult student at the nearby East Valley Institute of Technology was able to run across the street to emergency responders already at the motel, Flores said. The school said in a statement that the victim was one of seven students and an instructor working at Bistro 13 restaurant. The student was treated at a hospital and released.
Vinny Carbone, who owns an auto body shop near the motel and restaurant, said he was getting ready to open when he heard a man yell "Help, help" from Bistro 13 across the street. He turned and saw a woman outside the motel with what looked like a bullet hole in her side.
"She was in a chair but she was holding onto another chair, shaking, trying to keep her balance," Carbone said. "Another guy, he had blood on the back of his shirt."
The gunman got away from the restaurant by carjacking the school instructor's car.
Police say the man then went to an apartment complex about 2 miles away, where he went into an apartment and shot a man. The victim will survive, police said.
A police officer found another man in a neighboring apartment building with multiple gunshot wounds, and Flores said that victim was hospitalized in critical condition.
The shootings set off an intense hunt for the gunman. Mesa police searched the trunks of cars and brought in SWAT and canine units from other agencies.
Giroux served prison terms totaling more than eight years for burglary, theft, attempted aggravated assault and a marijuana violation, according to an Arizona Department of Corrections profile of Giroux.
He was first incarcerated in 1994 and returned to prison in late 1995 before being released about a year later. He then returned to prison in mid-2007 before being released in late 2013.
Last year, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge allowed Giroux to remain on probation despite an unspecified probation violation.
Mesa police said the string of crimes Wednesday included a motel shooting, a carjacking and a home invasion and ended with 41-year-old Ryan Giroux's arrest Wednesday at a vacant apartment.
Giroux was jailed Thursday on suspicion of murder and numerous other crimes, including armed robbery, kidnaping and aggravated assault. A judge ordered Giroux held in lieu of $2 million bond.
This undated booking photo provided by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office shows Ryan Giroux, 41, who Mesa police say committed a string of crimes that included a motel shooting, a carjacking and a home invasion that ended with the suspect's arrest on Wednesday, March 18, 2015. Police said the motive for the initial shooting at the motel was unclear but the other three shootings appeared motivated by robbery and the suspect's attempt to flee. (AP Photo/Maricopa County Sheriff's Office)
He was taken into custody after officers spotted him on an apartment balcony and hit him with a stun gun. Numerous officers led the handcuffed man to a truck parked outside the apartment complex.
Police later identified him as Giroux, who has served three stints in state prison since 1994.
An undated mug shot from the Arizona Department of Corrections shows him with several face and neck tattoos, including the word "skinhead" where his eyebrows normally would be. A newly released mug shot shows a bloodied and scraped up Giroux without many of his facial tattoos visible.
Police said in a court document that Giroux sustained minor facial and other injuries while resisting arrest and struggling with officers.
The police document also summarized statements in which two witnesses said a man was with Giroux when Giroux fired into a motel room. One of the witnesses, a resident of the motel, said the unidentified companion grabbed Giroux by the shirt "and told him they needed to leave the area," the document said.
Mesa police did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the witnesses' statements.
Efforts to identify a lawyer representing Giroux who could comment on the allegations against him were not immediately successful.
During the court appearance, the judge declared Giroux indigent and said he was appointing a lawyer to represent Giroux. A court spokesman said court records indicated Giroux would be represented by the Maricopa County Public Defender's Office. Amanda Martin, an office supervisor, declined to confirm that the office represents Giroux or to comment on his case.
Police said the motive for the initial shooting at the motel was unclear, but the other three shootings appeared motivated by robbery and the suspect's attempt to flee.
The shootings started with an argument inside a motel room that spilled outside, leaving one man dead and two women wounded, Mesa police Detective Esteban Flores said.
The gunman then shot a man working at a nearby restaurant. The adult student at the nearby East Valley Institute of Technology was able to run across the street to emergency responders already at the motel, Flores said. The school said in a statement that the victim was one of seven students and an instructor working at Bistro 13 restaurant. The student was treated at a hospital and released.
Vinny Carbone, who owns an auto body shop near the motel and restaurant, said he was getting ready to open when he heard a man yell "Help, help" from Bistro 13 across the street. He turned and saw a woman outside the motel with what looked like a bullet hole in her side.
"She was in a chair but she was holding onto another chair, shaking, trying to keep her balance," Carbone said. "Another guy, he had blood on the back of his shirt."
The gunman got away from the restaurant by carjacking the school instructor's car.
Police say the man then went to an apartment complex about 2 miles away, where he went into an apartment and shot a man. The victim will survive, police said.
A police officer found another man in a neighboring apartment building with multiple gunshot wounds, and Flores said that victim was hospitalized in critical condition.
The shootings set off an intense hunt for the gunman. Mesa police searched the trunks of cars and brought in SWAT and canine units from other agencies.
Giroux served prison terms totaling more than eight years for burglary, theft, attempted aggravated assault and a marijuana violation, according to an Arizona Department of Corrections profile of Giroux.
He was first incarcerated in 1994 and returned to prison in late 1995 before being released about a year later. He then returned to prison in mid-2007 before being released in late 2013.
Last year, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge allowed Giroux to remain on probation despite an unspecified probation violation.
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