Category Archives: Law Enforcement

Inmate death at Coconino Detention

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FLAGSTAFF – Yesterday evening at approximately 6:00 PM, while conducting a security and welfare check, a Detention Sergeant discovered an unresponsive male in a single cell located in our medical unit. The Sergeant immediately called for additional staff for assistance and began, with the assistance from our Medical Staff, Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and other lifesaving measures.

Additionally, staff requested a response of Emergency Medical Services. CPR and an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) was performed and used until personnel from Guardian Medical Transport and the Flagstaff Fire Department arrived and took over lifesaving efforts. Emergency medical personnel performed CPR until 6:39 PM, at which time, the individual was declared deceased.

The individual has been identified as Gibson Benally, 53, of Chinle, AZ. The same day, at approximately 4:45 PM inmates in the housing unit where Mr. Benally was assigned alerted staff that Mr. Benally was experiencing shortness of breath and dizziness. Our Detention Staff went to check on Mr. Benally and contacted our on-duty Nurse to come to the housing unit. Our on-duty Nurse assessed Mr. Benally and our Medical Staff determined that Mr. Benally would be moved to a medical cell for medical observation. Mr. Benally was moved to the medical cell at approximately 5:33 PM. Mr. Benally was currently being housed in a cell by himself when he was found unresponsive.

At this time no foul play is suspected and it appears that Mr. Benally died by an apparent medical related event. The death is currently under investigation by the Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division and pending autopsy and review by the Coconino County Medical Examiner.

Coconino County Sheriff’s office orders evacuations

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FLAGSTAFF – On April 19th, 2022, at 1100 hours the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office began evacuation operations in
the Timberline – Fernwood areas north of Flagstaff along Hwy 89.

The Sheriff’s Office was advised by the United States Forest Service at approximately 8:00 am that the Tunnel Fire had jumped the fire line and was threatening the Timberline – Fernwood Area. The Sheriff’s Office began preparation in anticipation of a “GO” order from the Forest Service.

At approximately 11:00 am a “GO “order was given, and evacuations began. Over 200 hundred homes are threatened at this time. Closure areas are East side of 89 is Campbell rd. to Sunset Crater, West side of the 89 is Summit Fire Station #33 to Sunset Crater.

A shelter is set up at Sinagua Middle School for those effected by the evacuations. The Coconino Humane Society is available for evacuated large and small animals.

We will update as information is made available.

If you are unsure about an evacuation notice or feel it maybe a scam, please contact your local law enforcement agency to confirm the location of any Evacuation stage or Set stage areas, please call the non-emergency numbers for the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office (928) 774-4523 and Flagstaff Police Department (928) 774-4114 and report any suspicious calls.

If you receive what you believe to be a fraudulent call to evacuate or any other suspicious call, it is important to provide as much information as possible when reporting this activity. This includes not only phone numbers from which calls are received but also names (even if names appear to be fake), email addresses, web domains, times/dates of contacts, etc.

Police investigate homicide in Flagstaff

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FLAGSTAFF –- On March 20th, 2022, at approximately 1:00 AM, Police responded to 2 N. Leroux, Collins Irish Bar for a report of a large crowd physically fighting which turned into a shooting.

When they arrived, officers located a subject in the street who had been shot. The victim was later identified as 26-year-old Frankie James Jackson, of Flagstaff.

The shooter was taken into custody and identified as 26-year-old Treysean Michael Anthony Ware of Flagstaff. Witnesses indicated that an altercation between Treysean and Frankie took place outside of Collin’s where Treysean pulled a gun on Frankie and shot him twice. Frankie was transported to the Flagstaff Medical Center Emergency where he later succumbed to his injuries.

Treysean has been arrested on charges of 2nd Degree Homicide, Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Disorderly Conduct with a Weapon and drug charges. This investigation is ongoing; however we are not actively seeking any additional suspects. There were no additional injuries reported in this altercation.

Fatal Pedestrian Accident in Flagstaff

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FLAGSTAFF — On March 17, 2022, at approximately 11:01 p.m., Flagstaff Police responded to the 3400 block of E. Route 66 regarding a collision involving a vehicle and pedestrian. Upon arrival officers located a male in the roadway with serious head injuries and began providing emergency medical aid until medical personnel arrived. The male was transported to the Flagstaff Medical Center for continuing emergency care and was pronounced deceased. The decedent is identified as Riley Belone, 45, of Flagstaff.

Flagstaff Police Collision Reconstruction investigators were called to the scene for investigative and evidence collection purposes. Investigators learned the vehicle was traveling eastbound on E Route 66 behind an uninvolved vehicle in the curb lane when they observed the vehicle in the curb lane take evasive action to avoid an obstruction in the roadway, which was determined to be Mr. Belone. The driver involved in the crash reported changing lanes to the left lane and was unable to avoid striking Mr. Belone as he was in the left lane. Information provided on scene indicates Mr. Belone was crossing E. Route 66 from the south sidewalk just east of the N Park Drive intersection when he was struck in the left travel lane. The driver of the vehicle involved in the crash remained on scene and was cooperative during the initial investigation.

This fatal collision is currently under investigation as investigators work to determine if speed or any other factors contributed to the cause of the collision.

Armed Robbery Suspect Arrested

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FLAGSTAFF – On January 26, 2022, at approximately 1:20 PM, an armed robbery occurred at the Mobile gas Station at 2484 E Butler Avenue. A woman, later identified as Hertecia Anderson of Cottonwood, AZ, entered the store and donned a black ski mask. She demanded the clerk’s money from the register while brandishing a handgun towards the clerks. One of the clerks was complying with the demands, and another clerk tackled her. They attempted to detain her, but she broke free and ran across the street. When police arrived, she was located and arrested at the Sinclair Truck Stop (Little America).

Upon further investigation, the handgun was later determined to be a BB gun, which had a realistic appearance. Out of concern for her safety she was transported to the Flagstaff Medical Center for evaluation of a prior medical condition. The Flagstaff Police Department Criminal Investigation Division is not seeking any additional suspects at this time.

The Coconino County Detention Facility Updated Court Commitment Schedule

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Flagstaff — The Coconino County Detention Facility started allowing individuals convicted and sentenced to serve jail time in Coconino County to self-surrender on April 4th. The Detention Facility had suspended the acceptance of court commitments when the COVID-19 Pandemic began as one way to keep the jail population down and keeping non-violent offenders out of jail to help mitigate the COVID-19 Virus from entering and spreading through the facility. Most jails in the state also implemented similar suspensions for the same reasons.

The acceptance of individuals to serve the obligated court commitment will continue to happen on a scheduled basis but we are lifting the daily cap of only 5-Court Commits.

The schedule will continue be done alphabetically by the first letter of the individual’s last name. Based on last name, individuals will have a seven-day period each month to be able to self-surrender to serve the imposed jail sentence. This schedule will remain until further notice and can be modified by the Sheriff’s Office if needed. Both the Flagstaff Detention Facility and the Page Temporary Holding Facility will follow the updated schedule which is listed at the end of this media release.

All other restrictions and suspensions will remain in place. Those continued restrictions and suspensions can be found in our multiple media releases that have gone out and are available on our Sheriff’s Office website and Facebook page.

The Sheriff’s Office will continue to stay up to date on the best practices and current available information and will adjust procedures as is necessary and appropriate.

Updated Self-Surrender Court Commit Schedule by last name.

A-H

OCTOBER 10, 2021 – OCTOBER 16, 2021
OCTOBER 31, 2021 – NOVEMBER 6, 2021
NOVEMBER 21, 2021 – NOVEMBER 27, 2021
DECEMBER 12, 2021 – DECEMBER 18, 2021
JANUARY 2, 2022 – JANUARY 8, 2022
JANUARY 23, 2022 – JANUARY 29, 2022
FEBRUARY 13, 2022 – FEBRUARY 19, 2022
MARCH 6, 2022 – MARCH 12, 2022

I-P

SEPTEMBER 26, 2021 – OCTOBER 2, 2021
OCTOBER 17, 2021 – OCTOBER 23, 2021
NOVEMBER 7, 2021 – NOVEMBER 13, 2021
NOVEMBER 28, 2021 – DECEMBER 4, 2021
DECEMBER 19, 2021 – DECEMBER 25, 2021
JANUARY 9, 2022 – JANUARY 15, 2022
JANUARY 30, 2022 – FEBRUARY 5, 2022
FEBRUARY 20, 2022 – FEBRUARY 26, 2022
MARCH 13, 2022 – MARCH 19, 2022

Q-Z

OCTOBER 3, 2021 – OCTOBER 9, 2021
OCTOBER 24, 2021 – OCTOBER 30, 2021
NOVEMBER 14, 2021 – NOVEMBER 20, 2021
DECEMBER 5, 2021 – DECEMBER 11, 2021
DECEMBER 26, 2021 – JANUARY 1, 2022
JANUARY 16, 2022 – JANUARY 22, 2022
FEBRUARY 6, 2022 – FEBRUARY 12, 2022
FEBRUARY 27, 2022 – MARCH 5, 2022
MARCH 20, 2022 – MARCH 26, 2022

Williams Fire department responds to Route 66 fire

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Fire fighters respond to a fire at the Turquoise Tepee on Route 66.

WILLIAMS — Williams Fire and Police units responded to a fire at the Turquoise Tepee at 114 W. Route 66 at about 8 a.m. this morning. When the owners arrived, a local resident extinguished the flames with a fire extinguisher. Fire fighters went through the display that was on fire to ensure it would not reflash. The fire caused little damage to the store.

Williams Fire Fighters ensuring fire is completely out.

GO Evacuations Ordered for South Garland Prairie

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COCONINO COUNTY – Due to the Rafael Fire and Forest Service mitigation efforts, the community of South Garland Prairie has been upgraded to a GO status. THIS IS AN EVACUATION ORDER. This includes the residences off of Boy Scout Camp Road, Arbor Lane, Thomas Loop Rd., Leisure Drive, Bluebird meadow Road, Dog Haven Place, Tanner Ranch Road, and other roads in that area. Finish gathering necessary items and leave the area immediately.

There is a shelter set up at Sinagua Middle School in Flagstaff. The address is 3950 E. Butler.

Rafael Fire operations will be conducting a backburn of the area north of Sycamore Canyon. This is done so fire crews can remove fuel in this area to create a buffer zone between the active fire and homes in the area. This area is in extreme draught conditions and fire can be unpredictable.

If you need assistance in evacuating, contact the Coconino County Emergency Operations Center at 928-679-8647.
Monitor CCSO and Coconino County social media and official news releases for additional information regarding the evacuation and re-entry.

Arrest made in the death of a man in Forest Lakes

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-CCSO booking photo

FOREST LAKES – On June 19, 2021, Chad Lapointe of Winslow, AZ was arrested for 2nd Degree Homicide in the death of a man following an altercation while camping in Forest Lakes, AZ.

The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office and the Arizona Department of Public Safety responded to a report of an altercation in a camping area in Forest Lakes near the Mogollon Rim Visitor
Center. Upon arrival, the deputy was flagged down by a man and woman in a white truck near the entrance to the camping area. The man and woman were later identified as Chad Lapointe, 27, and
Simone Franklin, 25. They stated they had been camping with another male subject, identified as Simone’s brother, Brandon Franklin, 27.

As a result of the investigation, it was determined an altercation had occurred at the camp site. Through the investigation it was determined Chad and Simone had an altercation with Brandon at the camp site, during which Chad fought with Brandon. Brandon died on scene from injuries
sustained during the altercation.

As a result of the investigation, Chad was taken into custody and transported to the Coconino County Jail in Flagstaff where he was booked on the charge of 2nd Degree Homicide.

We would like to thank the Department of Public Safety for assisting deputies with the initial response. Further investigation into this case in ongoing by the Sheriff’s Office
and Medical Examiner’s Office.

Sheriff’s Office Evacuating Dispersed Camping Due to Rafael Fire

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FLAGSTAFF — The Coconino County Sheriff’s Office is evacuating dispersed camping south of Forest Road 535 from the junction of Forest Road 231 road. The Sheriff’s Office is also evacuating dispersed camping in the Sycamore Canyon area.

Garland Prairie is reminded to be in READY. READY means Prepare Now. Make a family evacuation and communication plan that includes phone numbers, out-of-town contacts and family meeting locations. Build an emergency go kit with enough food, water, and necessary supplies for at least 72 hours.

Check with your neighbors, family, friends, and elders to ensure they are READY too. Register with the Coconino County Emergency Notification system at coconino.az.gov/ready