Victims of Phoenix serial shootings: Busy with their lives, they were linked by tragedy
They died in front yards, driveways, just outside houses, often just steps from family or friends.
Immersed in their lives — work, friends, sports, a baby on the way — they didn't appear to be looking for trouble. But they were gunned down in Phoenix shootings that police say appear to be linked but have no apparent motive.
Nine people were killed and two were wounded as the same shooter struck 12 times in the 11 months between August 2015 and July 2016, Phoenix police believe.
On April 19, 2017, investigators arrested Aaron Juan Saucedo in connection with the first fatal shooting; on May 8, they booked him in connection with the other attacks.
Police: 5 west Phoenix homicides likely connected
Here are the victims' stories:
Raul Romero, 61: 'Always there when we needed him'
Shot and killed outside of his car in the 900 block of East Montebello Avenue on Aug. 16, 2015.
Daughter Lora Romero described Raul Romero as a hard-working, loving and caring.
Romero, 61, had five children and four grandchildren.
"My dad would have done anything for us. He was always there when we needed him," Lora Romero said in a Silent Witness plea shortly after her father's death.
Read the full portrait here.
Jesse Olivas, 22: 'He had a good heart'
Shot multiple times on Jan. 1, 2016 in the 2200 block of North 58th Drive off Monte Vista Road.
His heart went out to the area's homeless population, his mother said.
Jesse Olivas, 22, would give the needy his shirts or shoes and was always asking his mother to buy them food, she said.
"He had a good heart; he had a kind heart," said Lydia Lopez.
Olivas was gunned down in the early-morning hours of New Year's Day 2016 in an apparent drive-by shooting. The shooting occurred about 12:45 a.m. and was the first murder of the year.
Lopez said her son had walked to the store and was just about home when he was shot by a drive-by assailant in front of a house in the area of 2200 N. 58th Drive.
Olivas was diagnosed with a mental illness when he was 18, she said, so he didn't work and wasn't in school, she said.
Read the full portrait here.
Diego Verdugo-Sanchez, 21: 'A big big teddy bear' with tattoos
Shot and killed at 9 p.m. April 1 outside a home in the 5500 block of West Turney Avenue.
For Diego Verdugo-Sanchez and Marina Smith, Diego Jr. was to be the “miracle baby.”
Smith had suffered through four miscarriages, one of them twins. But she was seven months along by April 1, and it appeared she would finally carry her child to term.
“They (were) getting married in October,” said Smith’s mother, Holly Bonilla-Garcia. “He was so happy, overjoyed. He did everything for my daughter.”
On that night though, while visiting Smith’s parents for a taco dinner, Verdugo-Sanchez was gunned down in his future in-laws’ front yard. He had planned to leave the house for only a moment to lock his car door.
Smith gave birth to Diego Jr. in an emergency C-section last week.
Read the full portrait here.
Krystal Annette White, 55: Mother and caregiver
Shot and killed about 1:30 am. April 19 near 32nd Place and Fillmore Street.
A memorial of bright pink, yellow and white flowers sits on top of overgrown grass, marking the spot where Krystal White died.
Her final hours bridge the two worlds in which she lived her tumultuous life — one of drug addiction and prostitution, and another in which she was a caregiver and mother.
White's family denied multiple requests for an interview. Interviews with those who knew her indicate that White had a preferred drug, meth, and had worked on the streets for nearly 30 years.
But a man at the hotel where White was living right before her death revealed that White had been his caregiver. She would stay with the man, who uses a wheelchair, cleaning and cooking him hot meals, he told police.
On the night she was murdered, he said, he saw White get into a car and drive off for the last time. White had told another man she hoped to make money for her daughter's wedding.
Read the full portrait here.
Horacio De Jesus Peña, 32: A runner, a helper, a caregiver
Shot and killed at 9:50 p.m. June 3 while standing outside a home in the 6700 block of West Flower Street.
On the evening of June 3, Horacio De Jesus Peña was at work, cooking dinner with a group of men and women with cerebral palsy — teaching them the importance of a well-balanced diet.
At the end of his shift at Valley Life, an organization that provides programs and services for individuals with a range of disabilities, Peña exchanged hugs with his group and fellow staff members.
“Goodbye ... see you in the morning,” one called out as he walked out the door.
Less than a half-hour later, he would be gunned down outside his home, with no one to witness his death.
Read the full portrait here.
Manuel 'Manny' Castro Garcia, 19: A sports fan, a prankster, recent grad
Shot and killed at 9:30 p.m. June 10 while standing in the 6500 block of West Coronado Road.
Manuel “Manny” Castro Garcia was an hijo, hermano and an amigo to many.
The 19-year-old “gentle giant” had a great sense of humor and was known to play pranks and make faces in family photos, according to the obituary posted by his family.
“He would always have us laughing and smiling,” they shared.
Garcia was a recent graduate of Maryvale High School and worked with his father, Margarito Castro, as a welder.
He was an avid fan of basketball and football, and was especially fond of the Arizona Cardinals, according to his obituary.
Read the full portrait here.
Maleah Ellis, 12: Dreams of being a cheerleader
Shot and killed at 3 a.m. June 12 outside the Ellis home in the 6300 block of West Berkeley Road.
Maleah was the youngest of the victims. Her final moments were spent with her mother, Stefanie Ellis, and her mother's friend Angela Linner. The three were hanging out in a car in the Ellises' driveway as they often did, chatting and listening to music into the early morning hours of June 12.
Maleah had dreams of becoming a cheerleader, just like her mother.
Maleah had two older sisters and seemed to just know everybody, her grandfather said, shaking his head. So many people used to stop by to see her.
Read the full portrait here.
Stefanie Ellis, 33: Close to her parents, her daughters
Shot at 3 a.m. June 12 outside the Ellis home in the 6300 block of West Berkeley Road. Ellis died July 7.
After three sons, Dossie Ellis Sr. prayed for a little girl.
“And I got her,” Dossie said of his daughter Stefanie. “Just the perfect little girl, to me.”
Stefanie Ellis was shot 14 times in her driveway on June 12 while listening to music in her car with daughter Maleah and friend Angela Linner. Ellis, who was in a coma after the shooting, died July 7.
About 120 people stopped by his house to add to Maleah’s memorial and well wishes for Stefanie.
“The yard was full. People coming from out of nowhere,” Ellis Sr. said.
Read the full portrait here.
Angela Linner, 31: Quiet and hard-working
Shot and killed at 3 a.m. June 12 outside a home in the 6300 block of West Berkeley Road.
In the early morning hours of June 12, Linner, her friend Stefanie Ellis and Stefanie's daughter were gunned down while listening to music in the Ellises' driveway.
Linner's mother, Theresa Maupin, described her daughter as a “quiet and loving person.”
“She didn’t do any drugs, she just worked and everything,” Maupin said.
See Linner's portrait.