Michael Kiefer

The Republic | azcentral.com

The murderer police have dubbed the "serial street shooter" struck nine times between March 17 and July 11, killing seven people and wounding two more.

Phoenix police have been stingy with details.

They have released police reports for eight of the incidents, but those have been heavily redacted.

They have distributed two composite drawings depicting a young Hispanic man with short black hair.

They have patrol officers and detectives out on the street.

They have brought other law enforcement agencies onto the case, including the FBI.

They are gathering surveillance videos and other data, but they are keeping their cards close to the chest.

Here's what The Arizona Republic has gleaned about the serial street shooter from police reports, neighborhood visits and conversations with victims, witnesses and law enforcement officers.

He shoots point blank

He's got a black 9 mm semi-automatic pistol that he holds straight up and down, and his aim is not always true.

Sometimes he shoots from the driver's window of a car, which forces him to reach across his body with the gun and lean out the window. Other times he shoots from a car's rear window, because he is not always alone. And sometimes he gets out of the car altogether to get close enough that he doesn't miss.

Most of his victims are also in cars, near cars, or have just gotten out of cars.

He strikes in two general areas

Six of the attacks have been in the west Phoenix community called Maryvale, roughly between McDowell Road on the south to Camelback Road on the north, stretching from 55th Avenue west to 73rd Avenue.

The other three attacks took place in east-central Phoenix, two of them within a stone's throw of 32nd Street -— one near Oak Street and the other near Fillmore Street. The third attack occurred south of Banner University Medical Center-Phoenix, in a neighborhood just south of Interstate 10.

All of the shootings were in residential neighborhoods with predominantly Hispanic populations. In fact, most residents of those neighborhoods are Spanish-language dominant.

In past serial-killer cases in Phoenix where two distinct areas were targeted, it turned out that the killer lived in one neighborhood and had business or family or some other reason to be in the other.

He knows the neighborhoods

Most of the shootings take place near corners onto thoroughfares, but curiously, according to the police reports, the killer frequently turns off the thoroughfare — the obvious escape route — shoots, and then drives into the neighborhood as if he knows where he is.

Maryvale is as circuitous as a rabbit warren, with winding short streets without easy exits, built to discourage through traffic.

The shooter clearly knows where he is.

He has access to multiple vehicles

Although police have circulated flyers depicting an older black BMW sedan, witnesses have described several cars, including a long white Cadillac or Lincoln; a dark Nissan Maxima or Chevrolet Malibu; a light-colored four-door car; and a dark car with "triangle-shaped" headlights.

Some law-enforcement officers speculate that the shooter may work in some automobile-related business, as an auto mechanic or in a used-car dealership, limousine service, auto-glass or auto-detailing shop. There are scores of such businesses along the east-west thoroughfares between Interstate 17 and 35th Ave.

Perhaps coincidentally, one of the murder victims owned a detailing and auto-glass shop.

He chooses his victims at random — or does he?

The serial street shooter has killed four Black females. He has shot at six Hispanic males, killing three and wounding two.

All of the Hispanics described in the police reports are large men, from 5-foot-11-inches tall to 6-foot-3-inches tall and weighing between 180 and 250 pounds. The shooter has been described as being slender and of average or slightly shorter-than-average height.

Several of the victims had drug convictions or were in possession of drugs when they were killed; one had several prostitution convictions; and at least one seemed to have some street-gang connections.

Someone knows who he is

The killer has not struck since July 11, when he shot at a young man in a car at 30th and Sheridan streets in Phoenix. He missed, but the young man provided the best description to date.

Given that some incidents described multiple occupants in the cars from which he shot, people know who he is. A call to Silent Witness could earn them $75,000 in cash.

If you have information on the serial street shooter or any other violent crime, police ask that you contact the Phoenix Police Department Violent Crimes Bureau at 602-262-6141, or contact Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS (480-948-6377), 480-TESTIGO (480-837-8446) in Spanish or toll-free at 800-343-TIPS.

You also can leave an anonymous tip on the Silent Witness website at silentwitness.org.

Bill Montgomery, the Maricopa County attorney, said last week that no charges would be filed against anyone's immigration status if they come forward to provide information in the case.

The crimes to date: