Argument leads to deadly shooting at Mesa pizza restaurant, police say
MESA, Ariz. - A domestic dispute that escalated into a shooting on Wednesday at Desert Peaks Pizza & Grille in Mesa left one man dead and another with serious injuries, police said.
Mesa Police say the shooting happened inside the restaurant near McKellips and Recker roads around 5 p.m. When officers arrived at the restaurant, they found two men, 51-year-old Joseph Papineau and Jason Zuchowski, 45, down on the ground with gunshot wounds.
Both men were transported to a hospital where Papineau was pronounced dead. Zuchowski was taken into surgery with life-threatening injuries. He remains hospitalized.
Investigators say Zuchowski and his girlfriend went to the restaurant where Papineau, the woman's ex-boyfriend, was already inside.
"At some point a verbal argument started between Joseph and Jason," police said on Nov. 3. "Joseph then left his seat, walked over to Jason and shot him. After shooting Jason, Joseph shot himself."
A third person was injured from shrapnel but is OK.
Police say the shooting was an isolated incident and there are no outstanding suspects.
Witness describes scene
On Nov. 3, we spoke with a person who was sitting right next to the suspect at the time of the incident.
"All I know is that the guy said ‘what are you looking at?’ and something unintelligible. I didn't hear it, but the [suspect] jumped off his stool and went around the bar, and it looked like they were going to get in a fight and just going to go see, and I hear two pistol shots. I think it was two," said the witness, who did not want to be identified. "He's standing there by the pool table, and he goes and the gun misfired. It was jammed, so he cleared the jam, and then he shot himself in the head and went down."
Joshua Schjoll, who works at a business near the restaurant, said the incident surprised him, to a degree.
"Kind of surprised me, but not too much," said Schjoll. "I mean, we're not in the best part of town, but it's not as bad as some other places."
Another person who works in the area did say the area she works in is not safe.
"It is kind of scary," said Gabriela Jones, who is the branch manager for a bank in the area. "I mean, that's just a couple feet away, and the fact that it happened so close."
The owner of the pizza restaurant where the shooting happened is reportedly really shaken up about the shooting. The restaurant is set to reopen on Nov. 4.
If you or a loved one is feeling distressed, help is available. Call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline via phone (by calling 988), text (by texting 988) or internet chat. The service is free and confidential.
Help is available for those who are victims of domestic violence. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 (TTY: 1-800-787-3224). You can also text START to 88788.