Phoenix police detectives are investigating a shooting that happened late Saturday night in the area of 43rd Avenue and Thomas Road that ended the life of a teenager.
According to the Phoenix Police Department, on January 14, 2023, just after 9:30 p.m., officers responded to a shooting near 4300
West Thomas Road. Around the same time, other officers responded to a local hospital for a juvenile who had a gunshot wound. It was quickly determined that the two calls were related, and officers began to investigate them as a single investigation.
Homicide detectives believe that the victim, along with other juveniles, left the parking lot of a convenience store when Julian Francisco Soto, age 18, fired several rounds in their direction.
Soto was booked on several felony charges to include murder and aggravated assault. One of those rounds struck the victim, who was transported to the hospital by the other juveniles.
Information about what led up to the shooting is still under investigation. If anyone has any information, they are encouraged to call Phoenix Police or Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS or 480-TESTIGO (Spanish).