On September 25, 2025, after years of delays and a trial that gripped the Phoenix area, an Arizona jury delivered a verdict that brought both relief and renewed sorrow to the families of eight murder victims. Cleophus Cooksey Jr., 43, was found guilty of eight counts of murder, as well as kidnapping, sexual assault, and armed robbery, for a spree of killings that rocked Phoenix and nearby Glendale over a chilling three-week span in late 2017. The sentencing phase, where Cooksey could face the death penalty, is set to begin on September 29, 2025, according to multiple reports from the Associated Press, KTAR, and AZFamily.
This verdict closes one of the most disturbing chapters in recent Arizona criminal history—a chapter that, for many, began with fear and confusion and ended with a long-awaited sense of justice. For weeks in late 2017, residents of metro Phoenix lived with a growing sense of unease. Eight people were murdered in rapid succession, and yet, unlike prior serial shooting cases in the city, the public was largely kept in the dark. There were no warnings, no manhunts broadcast on the evening news, and no sense of an imminent threat until Cooksey’s arrest in December 2017.
According to coverage by the Associated Press, the killings began on November 27, 2017. That day, Parker Smith, 21, and Andrew Remillard, 27, were found shot to death in a parked car. Just five days later, security guard Salim Richards, 31, was gunned down while walking to his girlfriend’s apartment. Over the following two weeks, Latorrie Beckford, 29, and Kristopher Cameron, 21, were killed in separate shootings at Glendale apartment complexes. Maria Villanueva, 43, was kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and found dead—naked from the waist down—in a Phoenix alley. Police later confirmed that Cooksey’s DNA was found on her body.
But the violence did not end there. On December 17, 2017, police were called to Cooksey’s mother’s apartment after reports of gunfire. Inside, they found a grisly scene: Rene Cooksey, 56, and her husband, Edward Nunn, 54, both dead. Cleophus Cooksey Jr. was at the scene and claimed he was the only one home, explaining away a large amount of blood as the result of a cut on his hand. But officers quickly found evidence that would unravel his story—a gun linked to several of the murders, a victim’s necklace, and vehicle keys belonging to Maria Villanueva. Police also discovered Cooksey wearing Richards’ necklace at the time of his arrest.
Cooksey, an aspiring musician who had been released from prison just four months before the murders, maintained his innocence throughout the trial. In a handwritten letter to the judge in January 2020, he insisted, “My charges are no more than false accusations. I am not a rapist or murderer. I am a music artist.” But the jury was not convinced. Prosecutors presented a mountain of forensic evidence, including DNA and ballistic matches, that tied Cooksey to the string of killings. The Associated Press reported that Cooksey’s trial had been repeatedly delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, stretching the wait for justice to nearly eight years for the victims’ families.
The emotional impact of the verdict was immediate. Adriana Rodriguez, daughter of Maria Villanueva, spoke through tears after the conviction. “He took my mom, the only support system that I had,” she said, as quoted by the Associated Press. For Rodriguez and other survivors, the day brought some long-awaited closure, though the pain of loss remains.
For others who knew Cooksey, the verdict was a grim confirmation of their worst fears. Eric Hampton, a longtime family friend, told reporters outside the courthouse, “I thought maybe he had a little heart. But he doesn’t have any heart at all, you know, to actually do these things to people and actually the worst part, kill your own mom. He’s a monster, and I’m just hoping that when the sentencing phase of this is over that, you know, that they put him to sleep.”
Authorities never publicly disclosed a motive for Cooksey’s actions. Some victims were acquaintances or even family, while others were total strangers, killed at random. The randomness of the violence, combined with the lack of public warnings, set this case apart from previous high-profile serial shootings in Phoenix. In 2015, a wave of freeway shootings caused widespread panic, but no one was seriously injured and the only suspect was ultimately cleared. Another case, which stretched from 2015 into 2016, saw bus driver Aaron Juan Saucedo charged with nine murders. Prosecutors are also seeking the death penalty in Saucedo’s trial, scheduled for later this year.
In contrast, Cooksey’s crimes went unnoticed by the public until his arrest. Police linked him to the murders only after the bloody scene at his mother’s apartment led them to evidence from earlier crimes. While investigators suspected Cooksey in a ninth killing—that of his ex-girlfriend’s brother, Jesus Real—prosecutors declined to pursue charges in that case.
The trial itself was a marathon, plagued by pandemic-related delays and legal wrangling. Cooksey pleaded not guilty, and his defense argued that the evidence was circumstantial and that he was being framed. But the prosecution’s case proved overwhelming, with forensic evidence and a clear trail of violence connecting Cooksey to each crime.
For Phoenix residents, the case is a stark reminder of the city’s recent history with serial violence, but also of the resilience of the community and the perseverance of investigators and survivors alike. The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the verdict, but for the families of the victims, the conviction marks a significant—if bittersweet—milestone.
As Cleophus Cooksey Jr. awaits sentencing and the possibility of the death penalty, the Phoenix community reflects on a tragedy that spanned years and left a lasting scar. For those who lost loved ones, the hope is that justice, though long delayed, will help bring some measure of peace.
