Mesa murder suspect had victim’s credit card in wallet, police say

PHOENIX – The suspect in a Mesa murder had the victim’s credit card in his wallet when he was arrested Monday, authorities said.

Officers doing a welfare check encountered a bloody scene in an apartment near Country Club Drive and Rio Salado Parkway on Sunday night, the Mesa Police Department said in a press release.

Brian Kazan, 59, was found unresponsive with multiple stab wounds around 7:45 p.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Detectives interviewed witnesses, researched previous calls for service in the area and reviewed security footage to identify 33-year-old Joseph Maldonado as a suspect, police said.

Maldonado was spotted in a business complex near Dobson Road and the Loop 202 Red Mountain Freeway around 6:15 a.m. Monday. Police arrested him on multiple active warrants. He had Kazan’s credit card in his possession.

During questioning, Maldonado admitted to killing Kazan but didn’t say why, according to police.

Maldonado, who said he’d been staying at an apartment next to Kazan’s for about a week, was booked into jail on one count of first-degree murder.

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