Police on shootings in Gilbert: We had been to house 5 times since 2009

GILBERT, Ariz. — Gilbert Police Sergeant Bill Balafas
said they believe 39-year old Jason Todd Ready was the
gunman in Wednesday’s shootings, a murder-suicide.

Police say they believe the former Marine with ties to
neo-
Nazi and Minutemen groups is responsible for shooting four
people and taking his own life in a suburban Phoenix home.

“It’s safe to say this was a domestic-violence incident,”
said Balafas.

Balafas expanded on that claim late Wednesday when he
referred to the original 9-1-1 call about the incident.

“In the call it was clearly stated this was a domestic
violence situation,” Balafas said. “Those two words were
used — domestic violence.”

Police believe it was Lisa on the first call and that she
stated there was a domestic violence argument going on and
she needed the police to respond.

“Towards the end of that call there were shots fired and
the phone line went dead,” Balafas said.

The police then received another 9-1-1 call.

“Shortly after [the original call] we did receive a
different call from a different line from someone who was
also inside the house who had found several bodies inside
the household.”

That person was a teenager in the house who had heard
arguing followed by gunshots. She came out of a back room,
found the bodies and called 9-1-1.

Authorities say that the four others killed were 15-month-
old Lily Lynn Mederos; 23-year-old Amber Nieve Mederos;
47-year-old Lisa Lynn Mederos and 24-year-old Jim Franklin
Hiott.

Media reports say Lisa Mederos was Ready’s girlfriend and
Amber and Lily were her daughter and granddaughter.

This was not the first time the police had been called to
this residence for domestic violence.

“We were at this address five previous times from 2009
until now,” Balafas said. “We went to the Tumbleweed
address in November of 2009 for a suicide threats call
where miss Amber Mederos was threatening suicide, in
August of 2011 for disorderly conduct where Mr. Ready was
the victim suspicious activity report, where Mr. Ready was
the reporting party, a vehicle burglary where Amber was
the victim and an aggravated assault report in February
2012 where Lisa Mederos was the reported victim and Mr.
Ready was the suspect.”

The aggravated assault report was given to the police six
months after the incident happened. Probable cause was
never established and an arrest was never made.

Ready was known in Arizona for organizing a militia in the
desert with the goal of finding illegal immigrants and
drug smugglers. The 39-year-old outfitted himself with
military fatigues, body armor and gas masks, and carrying
assault rifles.

Gilbert Police expect the autopsies and ballistics reports
to be completed before the end of business Friday.
All five bodies are the medical examiner’s office.

Investigators will recanvass the neighborhood and look
further into the backgrounds of the deceased.

The FBI is on the scene investigating because of the
“military-grade” munitions and two barrels of chemicals
found at the home. All of the munitions and chemicals were
removed Wednesday night.

The Anti-Defamation League had identified Ready as a neo-
Nazi, anti-immigration extremist and white supremacist,
according to the organization’s website.

Stay with KTAR for updates as the story develops.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this
report.