Arizona Police Make Arrest in Highway Shootings
Arizona drivers can breathe a sigh of relief after the police apprehended a man they believe has been behind a string of shooting that targeted cars driving along the state's highways.
Leslie Allen Merritt, a 21-year-old white male, was arrested in a SWAT raid on a Walmart in Glendale, Arizona, shortly before 7 p.m. local time yesterday, according to NBC News.
Police had tracked and watched Merrit all day Friday as he sold a gun at a pawn shop. Merritt did not resist when the police apprehended him as he entered the store with a woman and a young girl said to be 5-years-old.
Merritt owned a gun that investigators have shown through ballistics and forensics analysis was used in the four shooting targeting traffic on Interstate 10 on August 29. A tour bus, SUV, and two cars were hit but no one was injured. The police say they are looking for other suspects in other shootings that they said were probably copycat incidents.
Meritt's parents said that there was no way he could have been involved. He faces charges that could include criminal endangerment, assault, and unlawful discharge of a firearm.
Eleven vehicles have been hit since the rash of shootings begin in late August, with the most recent being a truck that was hit Sept. 10. The only reported injury from the shootings was a 13-year-old girl hit by flying glass.
The authorities are offering a reward of $50,000 to anyone who can provide more information about the shootings. Merritt is the second person detained in relation to the shootings, but it is believed the first person did not actually play a role in any of the shootings.
