Ex-convict arrested in Phoenix-area shootings that killed 1, wounded 5

MESA, Ariz. — A gunman killed one person and wounded five others Wednesday in a rampage that included a motel shooting, a carjacking and a home invasion and ended with his arrest at a nearby apartment in suburban Phoenix.

The suspect was taken into custody after officers spotted him on an apartment balcony and shocked him with a stun gun. Numerous officers led the handcuffed man to a truck parked outside an apartment complex.

Police later identified the man as Ryan Giroux, a 41-year-old ex-convict who has served three stints in state prison since 1994. A 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.

Giroux served prison terms totaling more than eight years for burglary, theft, attempted aggravated assault and a marijuana violation, the Corrections Department said.

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.

Police said Wednesday's 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 got away by carjacking the instructor's car.

Police say the man then went to an apartment complex about 2 miles away, where he entered an apartment and shot a man. That victim will survive, police said.

A police officer found another man in a neighboring apartment building with multiple gunshot wounds, Flores said. He was listed in critical condition.

The shootings prompted an intense hunt for the gunman as Mesa police searched the trunks of cars, interviewed witnesses and brought in SWAT and canine units from other agencies. Flores warned people in the neighborhood to remain indoors.

Several buildings in the area were placed on lockdown amid a heavy law enforcement presence. The Arizona Department of Public Safety sent its SWAT team to Mesa to assist with the effort, DPS spokesman Bart Graves said. Scottsdale police also sent SWAT and canine units.

A nearby Mesa Community College campus issued an emergency alert, saying it was on lockdown and anyone there should proceed to the safest location. The campus remained closed Wednesday.

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."

Alex Martin, of Mesa, saw the chaos that ensued.

"I heard several cop cars and ambulances and fire trucks roll up past me. I get here and there's easily 20, 30 police units just swarming the roads," Martin said.