Cop Shop

Visitation for Phoenix police officer Shane Figueroa will be from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday at Red Mountain Institute, 7126 E. McKellips Road in Mesa. A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at the same location. Interment at Mesa City Cemetery, 1212 N. Center St., will follow the services.

Figueroa was killed in a car collision early Saturday while he was en route to an emergency call, according to authorities.

Figueroa, 25, was driving a police cruiser at 1:22 a.m. Saturday when another vehicle attempted to turn in the northbound lane of 19th Avenue and collided with his vehicle. He was responding to an emergency call of gunshots being fired, according to a police report.

Donations can be made to M & I Bank in the name of Melisha or Kenzlie Figueroa, the officer’s wife and daughter. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the 100 Club.

At about 6:45 a.m. Monday, an Arizona Department of Public Safety officer was westbound on Interstate 10 near Elliott Road when he pulled his vehicle next to a passenger van that appeared to have more occupants than its capacity.  The officer followed the van as it continued west. Other DPS officers responded to assist in tracking the van’s movements.
The van was driving erratically and exited I-10 at 43rd Avenue, then went south. Art some point, the process the van attempted to ram DPS vehicles. Officers then tried to stop the vehicle.  The van traveled on several Phoenix city streets before reaching Southern Avenue, where DPS officers ended their pursuit.
At about 7:20 a.m., the van struck a passenger vehicle in the intersection of 27th avenue and Southern, where the van rolled over. Several of occupants of the vehicle ran from the scene. The total number of occupants is believed to have been 21. Through the assistance of Phoenix Police Department’s helicopter and patrol units, Phoenix police apprehend all that fled.  The occupants are believed to illegal immigrants.
The driver of the van, along with one occupant, are being held as suspects related to the human smuggling and other criminal violations. The other 19 are being interviewed. If there is no connection with human smuggling they will be turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Two men in their 30s were killed during what Phoenix police said was a car chase early Friday morning.
At around 2 a.m., officers responded to reports of shots fired and vehicles chasing each other in the area of 3400 E. University Drive.  Officers found two men dead in a Dodge Caliber. Both had apparent gunshot wounds and ultimately crashed into a tree on the south side of East University, according to police.
Their names have not been released.
Detectives reported finding shell casings from multiple caliber weapons in the street from 3200 E. to 3600 E. University. Witnesses describe the suspect vehicle as a dark Honda. Police aren’t sure who was in that car and said they don’t know the cause of the initial altercation.

Police are asking for the public’s assistance to catch a serial molester who has groped at least six Phoenix women in the past seven months, authorities said on Friday.

Though police do not have forensic evidence to link the sexual molestation cases, authorities said they believe the attacks are all the work of the same man.

“The factor that links the crimes is that they all happened similarly. The victims are walking in a public area, they talked to the man, he groped them, and then he gets away,” said Tommy Thompson, spokesman for Phoenix police.

The six incidents occurred between March 24 and September 30. The suspect is described as a Hispanic, Spanish-speaking male between the ages of 25 to 40 years old. The suspect is believed to be 5 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 8 inches tall with dark hair, brown eyes, and weighing between 180 to 200 pounds.

Police said the incidents generally occur in the morning in crowded public areas. Anyone with information is asked to call the Phoenix Police Department at (602) 262-6151. Authorities can also be reached at Silent Witness (480) WITNESS or (480) TESTIGO for Spanish-speaking callers.

The suspected “Bank Whisperer” was captured by authorities late Tuesday after a six hour standoff with Phoenix police, according to a U.S. Marshal’s spokesman.

Suspect Ryan Garcia, 34, was taken into U.S. Marshal’s custody for violating his probation for time served on a drug-related offense in federal prison, according to U.S. Marshal’s spokesman Matt Hershey . He will also be questioned about his involvement in the numerous bank robberies across the valley, Hershey said.

According to Hershey, Garcia barricaded himself in a hotel room located near the intersection of 21st Avenue and Van Buren Street with a female friend at 6 p.m. as police attempted to arrest him.

After receiving assistance from the Phoenix Police Department and the Department of Public Safety, Garcia and his female friend peacefully surrendered to police at 12 p.m.

Police will question Garcia about the bank robberies but no charges have been filed, Hershey said.

The “Bank Whisperer” is suspected of committing five bank robberies throughout the valley, including Tempe, Chandler and Phoenix banks.

A carwash is scheduled for Saturday morning to raise money for Phoenix police officer Barry Scott, who died Tuesday following a charity boxing match.

The carwash will be held to raise money for Scott’s family. Scott, a 22-year-old veteran was survived by his wife and baby.

The carwash will be held from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on the southwest corner of Power and McDowell roads in Mesa at the Diamond Shamrock gas station.