The Maricopa County Attorney's Office has confirmed the imposition of the death penalty upon Cleophus Cooksey for a string of murders that rocked the community in 2017. Cooksey, with a birth date listed as March 1982, has been convicted for the killing of six individuals, while the jury remained undecided on the sentence for the remaining two homicides he was accused of committing.
The series of violent acts began on November 27, when Cooksey fatally shot Parker Smith and Andrew Remillard as they sat together in a car. This marked the beginning of a spree of murders that ultimately ended with the death of his mother, Rene Cooksey, and stepfather, Edward Nunn, on Wednesday. In an unfortunate span of three weeks, Cooksey managed to also take the lives of Salim Richards, Latorrie Beckford, Kristopher Cameron, and Maria Villanueva. Cooksey was linked back to the murders through an array of evidence that was found to connect the separate crime scenes. This evidence included DNA, firearms, and casings.
Trial proceedings against Cooksey commenced in April of 2025. By September, the jury had delivered a guilty verdict on numerous counts, including eight counts of First-Degree Murder, three counts of Armed Robbery, two counts of Kidnapping, and one count of Attempt to Commit Sexual Assault. Beyond the death penalty, Cooksey has received over nine years imprisonment for the non-capital offenses.
In a statement released by the county attorney's office, Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell addressed the gravity of the crimes and the necessity of the death penalty. "Anyone who questions why we need the death penalty needs to look no further than this case," she expressed. Mitchell further described Cooksey’s crimes as the work of "a special kind of evil" due to his targeting of vulnerable individuals and the loss of eight innocent lives. She stood firm on her belief that "Death is the only just punishment for him," vowing to ensure the sentence is executed fully.
The community continues to grapple with the aftermath of these heinous crimes, and the sentencing provides a grim resolution to a case that has lingered in the courts and the public conscience for years. As reported by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, the final chapter in this tragic saga has, at least from a legal standpoint, come to a close.
