Cleophus Cooksey: Accused serial killer's trial begins in Phoenix
PHOENIX - The trial of a man believed to be behind a deadly murder spree began on May 5.
Opening statements took place in the case against Cleophus Cooksey, Jr.
Cooksey was charged with eight murders that happened during a three-week period back in November and December 2017.
The backstory:
Police originally arrested him for the murder of his mother and stepfather, then connected him to several other unsolved killings in the Valley. It's also believed that he is behind a ninth murder, but he is not being charged in that case.
He has been jailed since his mid-December 2017 arrest in the deaths of his mother and stepfather.
Investigators say Cooksey is linked to the killings through ballistics.
Cooksey previously pleaded not guilty in the deaths of his mother and stepfather.
The victims:
The first of the eight killings happened Nov. 27, 2017. By that point, Cooksey had been out of prison for four months after serving time for his role in a 2001 strip club robbery that turned deadly.
Cooksey knew some of the victims intimately, but others were strangers. Most of the shootings happened in the evening and overnight. Police never released a motive but said Cooksey was responsible.
Parker Smith and Andrew Remillard were the first victims, shot while sitting inside a vehicle in a parking lot. Five days later security guard Salim Richards was fatally shot on the way to his girlfriend’s apartment. Prosecutors say Cooksey and Richards fought physically and Cooksey walked away with Richards’ gun and necklace.
Latorrie Beckford and Kristopher Cameron were killed in separate shootings at apartment complexes in Glendale.
Maria Villanueva was expected at her boyfriend’s apartment in Glendale, but police say Cooksey drove away with her in her vehicle. The next day, her body, naked from the waist down, was found in a Phoenix alley. Authorities say she had been sexually assaulted and Cooksey’s DNA was found on her body.
Finally, on Dec. 17, 2017, Cooksey answered the door when officers acting on a report of gunshots showed up at his mother’s apartment. Officers noticed a lot of blood. Cooksey said he had cut his hand and was the only one home, according to police. Cooksey’s mother, Rene Cooksey, and stepfather, Edward Nunn, were found dead. Before he was detained, police say, Cooksey threatened to slit an officer’s throat.