Weekend wrap-up: Here are the biggest Arizona stories from September 27-29
Sep 29, 2019, 6:08 PM
Robert Hise (Chandler Police Department Photo)
(Chandler Police Department Photo)
More details on a Chandler man who allegedly terrorized his wife at gunpoint, the approval of a sale of a Scottsdale eatery in bankruptcy court and the arrest of a former Arizona Department of Public Safety employee.
Here are some stories that headlined the news cycle, both locally and nationally, over the weekend.
Chandler man allegedly terrorized wife at gunpoint, forced her to cut hair
A Chandler man is accused of terrorizing his wife at gunpoint, threatening her life and forcing her to cut her hair during an ordeal that led to lockdowns at two schools Thursday afternoon, according to court documents.
At one point, 54-year-old Robert Hise allegedly beat his wife, told her to write a goodbye note and aimed a handgun at her head in a rental home they own near Kyrene Road and the Loop 202 Santan Freeway.
After evading capture while police scoured the neighborhood near Kyrene del Pueblo Middle School and Kyrene de la Paloma Elementary School, Hise was taken into custody at 7:30 p.m. several miles from where the incident began seven hours earlier.
He was booked on 19 charges, including five counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one count of kidnapping, according to court documents.
Scottsdale’s Kona Grill chain sale for $25M approved in bankruptcy court
A federal bankruptcy court has approved the sale of Scottsdale-based Kona Grill for $25 million to a steakhouse chain, according to a report.
The Wall Street Journal reported the new owners planned to keep the chain’s remaining 24 restaurants in 16 states open. There are two left in the Valley – Scottsdale and Gilbert.
A judge in Wilmington, Delaware, approved the sale Tuesday. One Group Hospitality will pay cash and assume $11 million in Kona’s liabilities.
Kona filed for bankruptcy in late April, listing at least $74 million of debt.
The buyers, who run STK Steakhouses, had agreed to the sale price in early September.
FBI arrests former Arizona Department of Public Safety employee
Former Arizona Department of Public Safety employee Rene Algara was arrested on Saturday by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in coordination with the AZDPS, the agency announced in a press release.
Algara was terminated by the AZDPS prior to the arrest.
The arrest was made as a result of an FBI criminal investigation.
Algara was arrested on five felony charges related to falsifying government documents and 21 felony charges related to money laundering, according to the release.
Algara was hired by the AZDPS in February of 2016 and was assigned to the Highway Patrol Division in Cochise County.
Ex-Arizona state trooper pleads not guilty in sex extortion case
The former Arizona state trooper accused of trying to extort multiple women he’d pulled over for sexual favors pleaded not guilty Thursday.
Tremaine Anthony Jackson, 43, was arrested earlier this month and terminated from his job after the Department of Public Safety completed an investigation of allegations made by eight women.
The booking document (WARNING: explicit content) included a 26-page probable cause statement that shows a pattern of how Jackson allegedly preyed on women he found attractive during incidents from Oct. 2018 to March 2019.
According to the statement, he repeatedly prolonged traffic stops for longer-than-normal time periods while trying to coerce women into dating him or performing sexual favors before he’d let them go. The victims went along with his demands in some cases under the threat of being arrested.
Glendale mom of missing 15-year-old teen: ‘I just want her back’
The search continues for a 15-year-old girl with autism more than a week after she was reported missing.
Jessica Nuñez said her daughter, Alicia Navarro, disappeared from their Glendale home in the early morning hours of Sept. 15.
Nuñez said it’s out of character for Alicia to leave without telling anyone. She fears her daughter is in danger and could be with someone she met online.
“I don’t get it,” Nuñez said. “I just don’t understand what lured her or what made her make the decision.”
