Police: Family in Walmart melee were street performers

Before the Gaver family was arrested for its reported involvement in a fatal melee and officer-involved shooting at a Cottonwood Walmart, the family performed on the streets of Boise, Idaho, as a religious band, authorities said.

The band's name, Matthew 24 Now, apparently refers to the second coming of Christ. A Facebook page identifies the members as Peter Gaver and his sons, Jeremiah and Nathan. It chronicles the band's "busking," or performing in public for tips, and relates some of its experiences.

The trio were among seven Gavers arrested on suspicion of assault and/or resisting arrest Saturday night after a Cottonwood police officer was disarmed during a parking-lot brawl, triggering a series of shootings that ended in the death of 21-year-old Enoch Gaver and the wounding of an officer, according to police.

Police were called to the superstore after a female Walmart employee reported that she had been shoved out of the way when she attempted to use a restroom shortly before 11 p.m.

But there was no apparent hint of any previous violence involving the family, which advertised their acoustic band on a web site and chronicled their adventures on a Facebook page.

The Matthew 24 Now page includes an Aug. 9, 2014, entry that quotes the Bible and reads as:

"For those who are mind controlled: who don't own their mind/soul any longer, there is only one hope. Trust Yahweh with all your heart and don't lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straights. Proverbs 3, 5, 6."

The Gavers advertised their band on another website, GigMasters, saying they will perform for $250-$350 within a 10-mile radius of Boise. It said the band is also known as Busking in the Son.

"We don't do events where there is any form of promiscuity," the GigMasters posting reads.

Stephanie Matlock, a Boise resident and a former copy editor at The Republic, said she remembers the Gavers performing nearly every day outside a Boise supermarket. She said they typically posted a sign with a verse from the Bible. She does not recall the family soliciting donations.

"They had their sign, the music was fine, they played pretty well," Matlock said. "I'm surprised they are involved in this incident. I am not surprised they did something out of the ordinary."

Matlock's description and the Biblical verses cited on the Matthew 24 Now Facebook page stand in sharp contrast to a description of what happened that night, contained in a redacted Yavapai County Superior Court document obtained Tuesday by The Republic.

The redactions make the document difficult to understand in parts, but it said the first Cottonwood officer who arrived at the Walmart parking lot was immediately attacked and disarmed by one of the Gavers.

A second officer who arrived on the scene reported hearing the first officer say, "they got my gun," as he confronted five members of the family in the parking lot, according to the court document. He also heard someone say, "stop or get shot," it said.

The document said David Gaver approached, was shot and fell to the ground. Cottonwood Sgt. Jeremy Daniels, a 10-year veteran, was shot in the leg, but he was released on Monday from Flagstaff Medical Center, according to Sgt. Tod Moore, a Cottonwood police spokesman.

Another member of the Gaver family was shot in the head during the melee and died from his injuries, according to the court document.

Bart Graves, a DPS spokesman, previously said the shootings occurred after someone attempted to take an officer's gun. Graves said on Tuesday he had no knowledge that an officer had been disarmed.

Graves said the fight involved eight police officers and a Walmart loss-prevention officer, who went into the parking lot in an attempt to help. The officers suffered cuts, bruises and a twisted ankle during the fight.

The defendants are: Jeremiah Gaver, 28, accused of assault of a law-enforcement officer; Nathaniel Gaver, 27, accused of assault of a law-enforcement officer; Peter Gaver, 55, accused of hindering prosecution and resisting arrest; Ruth Gaver, 52, accused of assault of a law-enforcement officer; and David Gaver, who remains hospitalized.

The Gavers' next court date is scheduled for March 31, according to Dwight D'Evelyn, a spokesman for the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office. He said two juveniles from the Gaver family are in custody at the Prescott Juvenile Detention Facility.

"What makes this one unique was the whole family assaulting our officers," Moore said. "It was out of the blue. This family has been in Cottonwood for a month or two."

Nathan Gaver told police that his mother was using the restroom inside the Walmart and that his brothers, David and Jeremiah, were guarding the restroom, according to the court document.

"He advised that his brothers had a confrontation with a male subject trying to enter the bathroom," the document said.

Nathan Gaver told investigators that Cottonwood officers arrived in the parking lot and "started making demands." He said that he fought with officers to protect his sister.

Nathan Gaver said his family left Idaho because of "circumstances," but he refused to elaborate, the document said.