2018 Scottsdale, Arizona Shooting Spree

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by tpksstories

by tpksstories

In May and June 2018, a spreekiller sought out and fatally shot six people in Scottsdale, Arizona,United States. The shooting spree began on May 30 and ended June 4,when the shooter killed himself as police closed in. The shooter wasidentified as 56-year old Dwight Lamon Jones. The story was coveredon Dateline NBC on June 29, 2018.

Shootings

The victims of the initial shootingswere a noted forensic psychiatrist, two paralegals, and a counselor;all were shot within 24 hours of each other and within a 10-mile (16km) radius in Scottsdale and Phoenix. The other two victims werediscovered June 4.

59-year old Steven Pitt, a well-knownforensic psychiatrist, was shot and killed outside his office at 5:20pm on Thursday, May 31. Pitt had examined Jones in connection with a"bitter" divorce. In 2006 Pitt helped the policeidentify the Baseline killer who had raped and murdered a series ofwomen in Phoenix, Arizona.

48-year old Veleria Sharp and 49-yearold Laura Anderson, paralegals, were shot and killed at 2:15 pm onFriday, June 1 in the downtown Scottsdale offices of Burt, Feldman,Grenier, the law firm where they worked. A lawyer at the firm hadworked on the Jones divorce. By 11:30 pm on Friday, June 1, policeknew that the same gun had been used to kill Anderson, Sharp andPitt.

The body of 72-year old MarshallLevine, a psychologist and counselor, was found just after midnight,as Friday turned to Saturday, June 2, in his Scottsdale office. Levine was subletting his office from a woman who had providedcounseling services to his son during the divorce, Jones' intendedtarget.

By Sunday afternoon, police had Jonesunder surveillance as he drove around Fountain Hills in his goldMercedes Benz. At one point, Jones ditched a small bag containing a.22-caliber pistol, which police later determined to belong to one oftwo people, 70-year-old Mary Simmons and 72-year-old Bryon Thomas,who were shot and killed inside a Fountain Hills home. Their bodieswere not discovered until Monday, June 4. Police stated thatballistics ruled out the 22-caliber gun from having been used in anyof the shootings.

Investigation

The break in the investigation camewhen Jones' ex-wife issued a statement saying her current husband, aretired Phoenix police detective, "recognized the connectionto my divorce and the three crime scenes and he notified the PhoenixPolice violent crime unit on Saturday (June 2) night." OnceJones was made a suspect, a DNA sample was obtained from a relativeof Jones and matched to a DNA sample from a recovered shell casing.

Perpetrator

The perpetrator was identified as56-year old Dwight Lamon Jones who had previously been arrested. According to Rich Slavin, an assistant chief with the ScottsdalePolice Department, Jones was arrested in 2008 or 2009 on charges ofdomestic violence, alleging that he mistreated his wife and a child. Jones had been living at Extended Stay hotels for the past nineyears.

His former wife told reporters that she"feared for my safety for the past nine years." Inher statement she continued with "He was a very emotionallydisturbed person as the court records will confirm." Lessthan a week before the spree killings Jones used social media toattempt to bring forward allegations that his ex-wife was the abuserand not Jones. Jones created almost 10 hours of content outliningwhat he viewed as a conspiracy by his ex-wife, psychiatrists, lawyersand the Maricopa County Judicial system to rig a divorce and custodycase to steal his son from him.