Gunman Who Terrorized Phoenix Arrested

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Phoenix Police Chief Jeri L. Williams announces, Monday, May 8, 2017, in Phoenix, the arrest of 23-year-old Aaron Juan Saucedo in connection with the serial street shootings that terrorized the Phoenix area over four months in 2016. (AP Photo/Matt York)
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The gunman who terrorized Phoenix last year with a series of seemingly random shootings — killing nine people in four months — is behind bars, police said Monday.

A tip from the community led investigators to Aaron Saucedo, 23, and detectives were able to link him to the string of attacks by analyzing ballistics evidence, surveillance video and witness statements, police said.

“Today is a good day in the city of Phoenix,” said Mayor Greg Stanton, praising the law enforcement task force that hunted the shooter for nearly a year. “They had a clear mission: bring this killer to justice and get it right.”

The gunman’s targets included men, women and children, many of them ambushed near their homes in a working-class neighborhood from August 2015 to July 2016. A woman and her 12-year-old daughter were shot dead in one incident; a man and his 4-year-old nephew escaped unhurt in another. Police said they have not identified a motive but believe Saucedo acted alone.

“We hope that our community will rest a little easier and that our officers will get a little more sleep knowing that the wheels of justice are finally in motion,” Police Chief Jeri Williams said.

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