Top 15 bizarre and unusual crimes of 2023

The last year has been a busy one for Maricopa police. Officers have encountered plenty of youthful individuals, including 10 minors involved in an illegal house party and a teen whose first-time driving ended in a DUI arrest. Cops have also seen a few counterfeits fails, and several interesting choices for weapons.

Here are some of the most outlandish arrests officers have made in 2023:

PARTY FOUL: 16 arrested at house party — Cops bust party in vacant home

A weekend house party at a vacant home in The Lakes at Rancho El Dorado ended with the arrest of 16 people, 10 of whom were minors.

Demani L. Spivey, Kenyon G. Womack, Keyaun D. Christian and LaBron Peace were arrested and booked into the Pinal County jail on suspicion of first-degree trespassing and resisting arrest, police said.

Desmond S. Lewis and Kevin K. Sias were arrested and booked on suspicion of first-degree trespassing, resisting arrest and misconduct involving weapons. Sias, who is not a minor, faces an additional charge of underage possession of marijuana, police said. Underage on this charge refers to those who are younger than 21.

Officers said the trespassing involved 16 males and females, ranging from 15 to 20 years old.

Sias tried to run from officers and was tased. Police later learned he had a loaded handgun. The silver Smith & Wesson reportedly fell and landed between his feet.

Sias was later found to have marijuana on his person and in his vehicle, according to Maricopa police. In December, police released body-worn camera footage of the incident, revealing cops tased one teen in the garage.

PAW PATROL: Pooch poacher nabbed in bulldog theft ring — French bulldog burglary

Darius Villela of Maricopa was accused of stealing two pure-bred French bulldogs from a Glennwilde home and fleeing police in March. Three other suspected bulldog bandits remain at large.

In the wee hours of the morning, MPD was called to a home on West Capistrano Drive on a reported burglary when a caller informed dispatch someone had jumped into her backyard and taken her two French bulldogs before getting away in a Dodge Charger.

An officer en route to the home was flagged down by the caller’s husband, who told officers he saw and heard men jumping over the wall of his backyard with his dogs, which he valued at $25,000.

After a pursuit around the neighborhood, police finally caught one of the culprits, and more importantly, recovered the two dogs. The other three remain at large.

Both dogs were returned to their owners.

URINE TROUBLE: Man accused of peeing grocery store — Shoplifter accused of peeing in store aisle

Maricopa Police Department arrested a man accused of urinating in an aisle at Sprouts Marketplace.

Police arrested 24-year-old Joseph D. Chee on Friday night after they found him walking through the store with his penis exposed.

The store’s manager told police Chee was walking around with a rotisserie chicken and had hid merchandise in his clothing. Another employee said Chee urinated in one of the shopping aisles.

When officers found Chee, they said his penis was outside of his pants and his clothing was covered in urine.

Chee allegedly had “the odor of beer and chicken in his breath,” police reported.

Cops found a can of stolen beer in Chee’s pants pockets. An employee found the open rotisserie chicken elsewhere in the store with part of it missing. Police noted Chee only had $5, so he could not have paid for the items.

Chee admitted to shoplifting the chicken and beer, plus urinating in the store.

Chee was booked into jail on one felony count of indecent exposure, and two misdemeanor counts of shoplifting and criminal nuisance.

MAIDEN VOYAGE: Teen’s first time driving ended in DUI — Teen arrested for DUI

A Maricopa teen skipped the usual first-drive jitters and ended her behind-the-wheel debut with a DUI arrest.

InMaricopa unearthed bodycam footage and police reports from the unusual arrest of two minors in Maricopa in July.

The high-school couple guzzled more than gas before Mr. Right took his sweetheart out for her first driving lesson — but neither kid has a license.

Maricopa cops pulled over a suspicious Toyota Prius on White and Parker Road near Honeycutt Road late at night July 4. The car didn’t have working lights, according to the police report.

“Is this your first time driving a car?” the cop asked. “Yeah,” said Kaitlyn, whose last name was redacted from police documents.

Romeo and Juliet denied drinking, but after a sobriety test, Kaitlyn admitted to sipping on a White Claw. It was more than a sip as she blew nearly double the legal limit for adults.

Kaitlyn’s foray into motor vehicle operation ended with cops lodging charges of DUI, underage drinking, driving without a license and driving with no lights.

Her boyfriend picked up counts of underage drinking and underage tobacco use after a hot pink Elf Bar vape slipped out of his pocket.

FOOD FIGHT: Couple beat workers over chicken nuggets — Couple arrested in Burger King food fight

Police arrested Sheree N. Ross, 44, and Tavarus D. Ross, 43, after the couple hurled cups of soda and a display case at Burger King employees.

Officers found a “breathless” employee lying on the floor, surrounded by spilled food and damaged items.

Workers said Sheree Ross was angry over a long drive-thru wait and the number of chicken nuggets in her order.

Staff said Sheree Ross threw soda at an employee through the window. The employee reportedly threw the cup back at her.

Sheree Ross threw glass display cases and ordered workers to fight her.

Tavarus Ross allegedly tried to fight a female employee before hurling a glass cookie display case at another employee who was under age 18, who sustained an injury to his hand.

Sheree Ross was charged with criminal damage and disorderly conduct. Tavarus Ross was charged with disorderly conduct, criminal damage and aggravated assault using a dangerous instrument.

A continuance was issued Nov. 14 in Sheree Ross’s trial. The cases are pending.

ONE IN CUSTARD-Y: A bogus snow cone shop kidnapping — Kidnapping accusation lands wife in cuffs at snow cone shop

MPD arrested a woman accused of assaulting her husband at a local shaved ice shop after the couple lobbed bogus accusations of kidnapping at each other. 

Police were called to Bahama Buck’s on North Porter Road after a domestic disturbance was reported. The caller, 28-year-old Victoria M. Jones, accused her husband of kidnapping their two children and said he hit her with an unspecified object.  

In a twist, the husband told police it was Jones who kidnapped the kids and he’d taken his son and daughter out for frozen treats when his wife showed up and assaulted him.  

He said his wife followed him to Bahama Buck’s and struck him in the ear, ripping his earring out. Officers reviewed video footage of the attack.  

Jones was charged with four domestic counts, including one for assault. 

STOLEN THRONE: Toilet theft landed him in jail — Man arrested after alleged toilet theft

Reports of a stolen toilet and air-conditioning unit translated to felony charges for 24-year-old Jayson Francisco Tyler Roberts. 

Cops plunged into their investigation weeks before making an arrest, finally cracking the porcelain case in August. 

A woman who lives near Taft and Honeycutt Avenues first told cops her appliances were stolen in mid-July. She had a hunch about who did it. 

Roberts admitted to “removing” appliances from the Taft Avenue home at 2 a.m. one night and sending them away in another man’s pickup truck. 

Roberts’ relationship to the homeowner is unclear — but he admitted she previously refused to give him the unit because she was selling her home. 

He said he wasn’t sure where the air conditioner ended up. MPD arrested Roberts at his home on a felony burglary charge and booked him into the Pinal County jail. 

GNOME INVASION: She stole a legendary dwarfish creature — Woman accused of stealing lawn gnome

MPD arrested a woman accused of trying to break into a house and car before stealing a lawn gnome. 

Police arrested Sage E. Owens, 27, in Rancho El Dorado after multiple reports she was causing trouble in the neighborhood.  

Cops responded to North Anne Lane after a homeowner reported Owens, clad in a grey beanie, was trying to enter his home. The man said Owens spray-painted his doorbell camera and tried to climb through his front window.  

A neighbor called 9-1-1 and said Owens stole a garden gnome from her front door.   

Cops found Owens nearby with a can of black spray paint and a gnome on her person. She told police she was not the person they were looking for and that she let someone borrow her clothing.  

Owens was charged with burglary and trespassing along with misdemeanor counts of criminal damage and theft.  

BUZZKILL: Witch hunter’s weakness was wasp killer — Alleged stalker sprayed with pesticide

Maricopa Police Department arrested Forest J. Turner, 51, who was accused of chasing two women through a parking lot before he was sprayed with insecticide at Copper Sky Recreation Complex.  

 Cops responded just before 1:30 p.m. after reports of a fight.   

 Two women told officers they did not know Turner and told him to “get away” before he started chasing after them. One woman reportedly sprayed him with a wasp killer in self-defense.   

 The women told police Turner was acting erratic and called them “witches.”  Turner was charged with two misdemeanor counts of disorderly conduct. 

PANTSLESS IN PACANA: Couple jailed in sleepy almost-skinny dip — Drunk couple accused of indecent exposure

MPD arrested a married couple accused of lewd drunken antics at Pacana Park early one morning. Cops found the man passed out with his pants around his knees near the lake. 

Police arrested Jerome Frank, 31, and Doria Frank, 29, at Pacana Park after reports of drunk people at the park exposing themselves.  

Cops responded to the park after multiple reports came in about a pantless man. They found Jerome Frank “passed out” with his legs partially hanging over the edge of the lake. Officers said his pants were to his knees and his genitalia were fully exposed. 

Officers found Doria Frank in the bathroom asleep on the pot, who admitted to drinking liquor under the gazebo with her husband and a friend when it was still dark outside.   

Jerome Frank was charged with two misdemeanor charges of indecent exposure and public nuisance. He also had a warrant for failure to appear in court. He is awaiting extradition to New Mexico. He also got busted violating a city law — possessing alcohol at a public park in Maricopa has a penalty of a $100 fine. 

Doria Frank was charged with misdemeanor public nuisance and cited for drinking at the park.  

WEAPONS OF CHOICE

French fries — Man arrested hurling french fries at wife
Maricopa police arrested 51-year-old William Brennan after he admitted to hurling French fries at his wife at the McDonald’s restaurant on West Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway around dinnertime.

Someone at the restaurant called the police and followed the couple in their car until the cops intervened.

Police pulled Brennan over on West Green Court in Desert Passage. He got out of the car with his hands in the air.

Brennan told officers he didn’t mean to hurt his wife.

He said he threw the container of French fries at her instead of his fist.

Brennan was booked on domestic violence charges, including one for assault, and could face three years behind bars.

There are no further details available on Brennan’s charges.

Eggs — Man hurled eggs, meth in roadside assault
MPD arrested Joseph L. Ricketts, 39, after he allegedly threw a carton of eggs at his girlfriend and threw her against a truck and punched her.

MPD responded to Anderson and Steen Roads after a woman reported her boyfriend attacked her.

She told officers she was on her way to pick up a visibly upset Ricketts up from work when she spotted him walking along the roadside. Ricketts got into the bed of the truck his girlfriend was driving and continued yelling at her. The woman got out of the truck and told Ricketts to get out of her truck — and her life.

The woman told officers Ricketts then threw a carton of eggs at her and pinned her against the truck. She collapsed as Ricketts allegedly punched her in the back of the head.

Two hours later, police found Ricketts driving near Honeycutt Road and Tarragona Boulevard and tried to stop him. They said he threw methamphetamine out of his window near Desert Wind Middle School.

Ricketts later admitted to punching his girlfriend and hurling a brick at her car because he was angry, cops said. He also admitted to throwing the meth out of his car when officers initiated the stop.

Police charged Ricketts with domestic assault and criminal damage related to the attack on his girlfriend, along with possession of dangerous drugs and possession of dangerous drugs in a school zone.

Ab roller — Mom arrested in ab roller attack
MPD arrested a mom after she and her daughter exchanged blows with exercise equipment. The spat started over accusations of being a “bad mother.”

MPD said Flora E. Retana Escoto, 45, tried to hit her daughter with an ab roller.

Police responded to a home on West Amsterdam Road in Maricopa Meadows after the daughter reported a domestic aggravated assault. She told dispatch she struck her mother in the head with the ab roller after her mom swung at her with the same item.

Officers found Retana Escoto near the front door and she was bleeding on the pavement from a head injury. Police spoke with her adult daughter, who told them how the argument escalated.

Retana Escoto allegedly tried to attack her daughter, who managed to wrestle the ab roller away. The daughter told officers she mistakenly hit her mother on the forehead.
Retana Escoto told officers she was tired of her daughter making accusations she was a “bad mother.”

Police believed Retana Escoto was the primary aggressor after interviewing four witnesses, all of whom were children. Escoto was booked into the Pinal County jail on two domestic violence charges, including aggravated assault with a dangerous instrument.

COUNTERFEIT FAILS

He fled cops on motorcycle bought with fake cash — Man flees on motorcycle bought with fake cash
Maricopa police arrested Luis Gomez, 27, accusing him of buying a cycle with counterfeit money with the intent of selling it for real cash.

Cops responded to Rancho Mirage just after 10 a.m. after a Kawasaki motorcycle was reported stolen. Five minutes later, an officer saw Gomez on the motorcycle driving west on Honeycutt Road near North Porter Road.

Gomez evaded police at first. Cops said Gomez jumped off the motorcycle and ran through the backyards of several houses before he was arrested near West Maricopa Avenue.

Gomez, who was charged with auto theft, fraudulent schemes and unlawful flight, later told officers he met the seller to buy the motorcycle even though he believed it was listed above market value. He reportedly said he gave the seller $6,500 in fake cash and planned to sell it for $4,000.

He considered murder in fake Rolex ruse — Man pulled gun in watch deal
A man claimed he was a scam victim — but he’s the one who ended up in jail after threatening murder.

Robert Wyatt, 43, said he bought a fake Rolex for $5,000 and arranged to buy another one. He pulled a gun on the supposed counterfeiter.

When police responded to the parking lot between McDonald’s and Dignity Health Urgent Care along John Wayne Parkway midafternoon, they found the two men behind the urgent care.

After finding out the Rolex he bought was counterfeit, Wyatt set up a “ruse” to get his money back at gunpoint. When the watch dealer told Wyatt he did not have the money, Wyatt reportedly brandished a handgun and said he would “put a bullet in his head.”

Wyatt, who was charged with weapons misconduct along with misdemeanor counts of lying and making threats, denied pulling the gun, but later admitted it to police along with the thoughts of killing the alleged counterfeiter.

 

Editor’s note: All statements of fact are attributable to probable cause statements obtained from the Maricopa Police Department.