Man kills woman, shoots man then commits suicide in South Phoenix

According to Phoenix police, a man shot and killed himself after witnesses identified him as a suspect in an earlier double shooting.

Officers responded just after 9 p.m. to a reported shooting near 900 West Alta Vista Road and found a man with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound and a woman with a critical gunshot wound.

Both victims were taken to the hospital by Phoenix Fire Department personnel. The woman, 31-year-old Monica Ornelas, was pronounced dead.

After homicide detectives began their investigation, witnesses identified 39-year-old Juan Solorio-Menera as the suspect and followed leads to a house near 21st and Glenrosa avenues in an attempt to locate him.

Solorio-Menera was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound and pronounced deceased.

In August, Phoenix released preliminary crime statistics for the first six months of 2023, reporting a nearly 15% decrease in the number of shooting victims.

In April 2023, Phoenix police launched the Non-Fatal Shooting Investigation Squad as a project within the Crime Gun Intelligence Unit. Their goal is to respond to the scene of non-fatal shootings, whenever a bullet pierces the skin, to assist or assume the investigation.

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