Phoenix Police chief admits wrong man was killed by officers in January shooting

PHOENIX – Eleven days after a deadly shooting involving his officers, Phoenix Police Chief Matt Giordano confirmed that the wrong man was killed.

“Based on what we now know, I am able to share that the man who was fatally shot had disarmed the individual who had fired shots at the home and other family members. He was not the subject of the original call,” Giordano said Friday in a statement about the Jan. 26 incident.

Family members told local media outlets that police shot the wrong man after 36-year-old Christian Diaz Rendon was killed.

The Arizona Department of Public Safety is conducting a criminal investigation into the incident.

Giordano said his department would release a Critical Incident Briefing video about the investigation in the next few days.

“My commitment is to transparency and accountability. Once DPS completes its investigation, the Phoenix Police Department’s Professional Standards Bureau will conduct an internal administrative investigation to determine whether our policies, training and expectations were followed in this incident,” the chief said in a statement.

“We know this does not lessen the pain felt by those who are grieving. Our goal is to be transparent and maintain trust as we work through this difficult incident together.”

Statement from Phoenix Police Chief Matt Giordano. pic.twitter.com/wbcH7P4Ix6

— Phoenix Police (@PhoenixPolice) February 6, 2026

Jarvis Gonzales, Rendon’s stepson, wants police to release more information.

“It feels like they’re really trying to just dodge any credibility, any responsibility, and it doesn’t really do anything,” Gonzales told KTAR News 92.3 FM. “They didn’t say who the officer is, they didn’t release body cam footage, they’re not helping at all. That statement is basically just reiterating what we already know.”

What led up to police killing wrong man in Phoenix?

Officers responded to a shooting call at the house near 73rd Drive and Lower Buckeye Road around 6:20 p.m. on the day Rendon was killed.

The initial media advisory from police said two men were shot during the incident, one of whom died, and another was detained and hospitalized with injuries unrelated to gunfire. The advisory didn’t specify who fired any of the shots.

A Jan. 28 update identified Rendon as the person who died, but police didn’t say who fired the shot or shots that killed him until Giordano’s statement on Friday.

“They shot the wrong guy,” Gonzalez, who lives in the home, told 12News reporters after the shooting. “They shot my stepdad in the face.”

Media reports also said the person injured by gunfire was shot in the leg before police arrived.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Heidi Hommel contributed to this report.

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