Police: Suspect in Gilbert double homicide unarmed when shot

A man suspected of killing a woman and young man in Gilbert early Sunday morning was unarmed when Gilbert police shot and took him into custody, the police department said Monday.

Matthew Lee Crain, 35, who is in critical condition but is expected to survive, "did not have the murder weapon on him'' when two officers opened fire Sunday morning near a canal, close to Williams Field and Ashland Ranch roads, said Lt. Hugh White, a police spokesman.

White said police have been searching the area for the weapon but had not found it as of late Monday afternoon. White said Crain was believed to be armed and extremely dangerous after shooting Stacey Steward, 43, and Alex Tamborski, 17, to death during a dispute between roommates at about 2:45 a.m.

White said police also were told by Steward's 17-year-old daughter that Crain had made suicidal statements, in addition to shooting her mother and the girl's boyfriend. He said Steward originally called police to say she was having an argument with Crain, her roommate.

Steward handed the phone to her daughter, and a dispatcher overheard a female voice yelling, "Stop, no,'' and "Matt'' several times. Gunshots were heard over the phone before officers arrived.

The girl told police that Crain shot her mother first before shooting her boyfriend, who had been hiding, White said.

Officers eventually found Crain walking along a canal north of Williams Field Road about five hours later.

When confronted by officers, police say Crain made an obscene gesture and started running away. Crain put his hands in the front waistband of his shorts, then turned around with his arm extended backwards in the direction of the officers, according to police.

"Perceiving the threat, both officers engaged Crain with gunfire,'' White said in a prepared statement.

Crain attempted to take cover in a gazebo, which the officers interpreted as an attempt to obtain a tactical advantage, police said. The officers continued to fire until Crain fell and was taken into custody.

"The murder weapon was not found in Crain's possession, and an extensive search is underway in the area to locate the weapon,'' White wrote.

He said that, after Crain recovers sufficiently, he will be booked on suspicion of two counts of murder.

The officers were not identified by name. One was described as a SWAT team member who has been with Gilbert police since 2011, after seven years with another police agency. The second is a sergeant who has been with Gilbert police since 2001. The officers were placed on standard administrative leave during the shooting investigation.

Crain was sentenced in July 2013 on an amended charge of criminal trespassing and threatening and intimidating as a domestic-violence offense. He was just discharged from his three years of probation on Oct. 6, according to Maricopa County Superior Court records.

In a separate Gilbert domestic-violence incident on Sunday, police said Douglas Holt, 47, who was shot in the leg by his daughter in the 5000 block of Stone Creek Drive, remained in stable condition at a hospital.

When Holt recovers sufficiently, police said he would be booked on suspicion of aggravated assault and disorderly conduct. White said Holt is accused of choking his wife and coming at his daughter with a knife.