Homicide Suspect -Attempt to Identify

The Mesa Police Department is seeking additional public assistance in the identification of a Homicide suspect. On February 2, 2018, at approximately 7:15pm, a male suspect entered the Premier Nails & Spa located at 9115 E. Baseline. Once inside, the suspect fatally stabbed the female victim, Lindsey Eastridge, before fleeing the business. No vehicle was seen. The motive for the attack remains unknown.

Detectives have been following leads since the night of the homicide; however, they have not been able to positively identify or locate the suspect. The video and photos released today are the next step in bringing this case to resolution for the victim’s family and community. Anyone with information is asked to call the Mesa Police Department at 480-644-2211, option 2, or Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS.

Suspect:
Adult male, wearing a dark hoodie, eyeglasses, “US Polo Assn” blue jeans, gray shoes with white soles.

Officer Involved Shooting - Arrest

On February 11, 2018 Jesse McCullough was served with an Order of Protection against his wife for pointing a handgun at her. The order of protection stated he shall not go to 1646 N Jones Circle (residence shared by him and his wife).

On February 15, 2018 Jesse went to that residence and entered through a back door. Once inside he grabbed a handgun from a safe. A neighbor who had knowledge of the Order of Protection witnessed Jesse going into the residence and called police. We responded and surrounded the residence and called Jesse on the phone. We learned there was only one other adult male already inside the residence who was helping clean the house when Jesse arrived. Jesse refused to come out of the residence and after about an hour standoff with the police he fired several shots through the front door and the front window toward the officers. Two police vehicles were struck by Jesse’s gun fire while officers were taking cover behind those vehicles. Five officers returned fire during this exchange. Jesse then returned to speaking with police negotiators and ultimately exited the residence as requested without a weapon. Jesse did not comply with the arrest team's commands and attempted to engage in a fight with them once he was out of the residence. During the struggle Jesse received minor injuries as he was taken into custody. He was transported to the hospital for treatment prior to being booked and charged.

Officers learned that the other adult male in the residence was a victim who was being held at gunpoint and had his shoelaces tied to prevent him from running. He was used as a shield when Jesse exchanged gunfire with the police and he was forced to speak to the negotiators on the phone without being able to say what was happening inside the residence during the call. Jesse was interviewed and admitted to knowing about the Order of Protection and admitted to shooting six rounds out the front door. He also stated he was suicidal which was supported by messages he had sent to his wife in the past few days.

Jesse has been charged with four counts of Aggravated Assault with a deadly weapon, one count of Kidnapping, one count of Burglary, six counts of Discharging a Firearm within city limits and one count of violating an Order of Protection.
This is an example of how quickly a routine call can turn deadly. Our primary concern on these calls is the safety of our community and all involved. The professionalism of our patrol officers, the tactical team, and negotiators is what facilitated a potentially deadly standoff with high emotions to end in a safe manner.

Crime Stats - January 2018

The following are the top 5 calls for service and arrests for each patrol district -- 01/01/2018 through 01/31/2018.



To see which district you are in, click on each individual district listed at left to see their map.
 

FIESTA		CENTRAL
Call Type	Frequency	Call Type	Frequency
Check Welfare	399	Check Welfare	388
Subjects Disturbing	334	Subjects Disturbing	334
Other Agency Assist	218	Warrant Arrest	263
Trespass	212	Other Agency Assist	217
Loud Music/Noise	202	Trespass	195
Arrests	Frequency	Arrests	Frequency
Homicide	1	Homicide	0
Rape	1	Rape	0
Robbery	6	Robbery	10
Aggravated Assault	14	Aggravated Assault	11
Breaking & Entering	5	Breaking & Entering	10
Theft	46	Theft	44
GTA	2	GTA	4
Alcohol/DUI	56	Alcohol/DUI	49
Other Assaults	54	Other Assaults	44
Disorderly Conduct	33	Disorderly Conduct	27
Drugs	117	Drugs	83
Fiscal/Forgery	11	Fiscal/Forgery	8
Loitering/Runaway	1	Loitering/Runaway	0
Sex Offenses	2	Sex Offenses	1
Vandalism	22	Vandalism	22
All Other	182	All Other	251
TOTAL	553	TOTAL	564

RED MOUNTAIN		SUPERSTITION
Call Type	Frequency	Call Type	Frequency
Check Welfare	355	Check Welfare	399
Subjects Disturbing	300	Burglary Alarm	231
Other Agency Assist	216	Subjects Disturbing	225
Burglary Alarm	191	Other Agency Assist	212
Loud Music/Noise	178	Suspicious Activity	146
Arrests	Frequency	Arrests	Frequency
Homicide	0	Homicide	1
Rape	2	Rape	0
Robbery	3	Robbery	2
Aggravated Assault	7	Aggravated Assault	4
Breaking & Entering	3	Breaking & Entering	8
Theft	52	Theft	53
GTA	0	GTA	2
Alcohol/DUI	38	Alcohol/DUI	38
Other Assaults	35	Other Assaults	27
Disorderly Conduct	19	Disorderly Conduct	22
Drugs	56	Drugs	32
Fiscal/Forgery	8	Fiscal/Forgery	8
Loitering/Runaway	4	Loitering/Runaway	6
Sex Offenses	1	Sex Offenses	2
Vandalism	22	Vandalism	14
All Other	122	All Other	89
TOTAL	372	TOTAL	308

Suspect Arrested for Stealing Thousands of Dollars of Backflow Valves

After months of investigation, a suspect has been arrested for stealing Backflow Valves in the East Valley.  Roberto Baltazar Perez, was arrested on January 31, 2018, for 15 counts for theft and related charges.  For months, Detectives have been working to locate and arrest a suspect involved in these crimes.  Each theft can result in thousands of dollars in damage and repairs for a business when the valves are cut out.  When the valves are cut out, the businesses, apartment complexes and other commercial areas are left without water until the costly repairs can be made.  Great detective work has Perez off the streets and businesses staying open.

Roberto Perez

Backflow Valve

Indecent Exposure - Arrest

On February 7th, 2018, the Mesa Police Department arrested Erik Gerard Becker (DOB: 11/11/67) on multiple counts of Public Sexual Indecency and Indecent Exposure. Erik was recently identified as an investigative lead in multiple indecent exposure incidents in Mesa going back to February 15, 2017. It is alleged that Erik exposed himself and committed a sexual act on at least three occasions.

February 15, 2017 in the area of 2000 S Pennington in Mesa – Adult victim
October 12, 2017 in the area of 2000 S Longmore in Mesa – Juvenile victim
November 2, 2017 in the area of 2500 S El Paradiso in Mesa – Adult victim

Once the investigation determined there was probable cause to charge Erik, he was contacted at his residence and placed under arrest. Erik declined to speak to investigators about these allegations. Mesa Police has been working closely with Chandler Police where Erik has been identified as an investigative lead in a series of indecent exposures. Erik has a history of both Public Sexual Indecency and Indecent Exposure charges in Mesa and Chandler.

Erik has been charged and booked on four counts of Public Sexual Indecency (one count involving a minor), and three counts of Indecent exposure (one count involving a minor). The Mesa Police Department takes allegations of sexual offenses very seriously and will continue to thoroughly investigate allegations of this nature. If anyone has information pertinent to this case, please contact the Mesa Police Department at 480-644-2211.

15 Arrests for Prostitution in Operation Eagle's Nest

January was Human Trafficking Awareness Month. In keeping with the Mesa Police Department's efforts to raise awareness and stop Human Trafficking, detectives conducted Operation Eagle's Nest, an operation targeting persons seeking prostitutes online.

Detectives, using common social media platforms, posted ads for suspects seeking illegal sex acts.  Suspects responding to the ad arrived at a pre-determined location where instead of sex, they were met by officers instead of prostitutes and taken into custody. Fifteen suspects were taken into custody for ARS 13-3214, Solicitation of Prostitution, a class one Misdemeanor, during the operation. The suspects ranged in age from 29 to 62 years old.  This operation was conducted in support of the National Johns Suppression Initiative (NJSI).  Stopping Human Trafficking and Prostitution will continue to be a high priority for the Mesa Police Department.

Jeffrey Miller

Andrew Heredia

Gary Uchytil

Kenneth Early

Gerardo Guevera

George Lindbloom

Gary Fobare

Edgar Martinez

Juan Lopez-Escobar

Jonas Yoder

Bryan Stonecipher

Demetrius Montoya

Honnatthan Garcia-Perez

Thomas Lynch

Arturo Cuevas