Local, state and federal law enforcement are investigating a shooting spree in the West Valley that authorities think played out over about 90 minutes Thursday. Police have released few details as they focus on investigating crime-scenes spanning several cities.
Detectives have at least eight scenes to process and a dozen injured people to interview. One victim, a 56-year-old man, has died. The rest, who range in age from 19-56, are expected to survive.
Authorities first responded to a report of a drive-by shooting and learned the suspect’s license plate number. At the same time, a flood of calls reporting more shootings in other places were dispatched by law enforcement.
Peoria police on Friday identified Ashin Tricarico, 19, of Surprise as the suspect. Surprise police said Tricarico surrendered peacefully in a traffic stop. Firefighters had called in officers after spotting the man’s SUV at a small complex near 147th and Grand avenues.
Tricarico faces multiple charges, including first-degree murder and aggravated assault, police said in a press release Friday. Peoria police have not yet identified a potential motive for the shoot spree.
Court records say police found an AR15 rifle inside the white SUV driven in the shooting spree. Notes from a detective’s interview with the 19-year-old suspect say he thinks every car he drove past pointed a gun at him.
A probable cause statement by police says one victim was shot as he drove north on the Loop 101. That man was later found dead in a red pickup truck, which ended up in a canal. Tricarico is accused of starting to shoot at other drivers Wednesday night before Thursday’s spree across Glendale, Surprise and Peoria. Authorities say Tricarico is a security guard and was recently involved in a separate shooting. Investigators noted that Tricarico thinks people have been following him around in connection with the incident for about a week.
