Here’s a timeline of everything involving Preston Lord, Gilbert Goons, East Valley youth violence

PHOENIX — The East Valley has been rocked in the past several months due to allegations of teen violence, the emergence of a possible gang called the Gilbert Goons and the death of 16-year-old Preston Lord.

Lord’s October 2023 death brought to light other allegations of violence, involvement from the FBI and more attention to East Valley police departments investigating the cases.

Here’s a timeline of everything we know involving Lord, the Gilbert Goons and the scope of East Valley youth violence:

October 2022 (exact date unknown)

A person was assaulted in Gilbert near Guadalupe Road and Freestone Parkway, between Lindsey Road and Val Vista Drive. The incident was not reported to police until Dec. 26, 2023.

Nov. 22

A juvenile was assaulted outside of a home near Higley and Riggs Roads in Gilbert.

Dec. 3

A group of people assaulted an adult in a parking garage on Vaughn Avenue west of Gilbert Road in downtown Gilbert.

Dec. 16

There was an assault on a victim in Gilbert.

Dec. 17

There was an assault near Higley and Elliot roads.

Dec. 30

Connor Jarnagan, 17, was assaulted while in his vehicle by a group of youths outside the In-N-Out Burger on Market Street near Williams Field Road and Santan Village Parkway, leaving him bloodied and requiring staples in his head.

May 29, 2023

A minor was assaulted in Mesa near Val Vista Drive and Pueblo Avenue, between Broadway Road and Baseline Avenue. It wasn’t reported to police until January.

July 6

William Owen Hines, 18, was accused of vehicular assault in connection with an incident that left a victim injured.

Aug. 18

A group of youths violently attacked a minor at the In-N-Out Burger on Market Street in Gilbert.

Oct. 28

Preston Lord, a student at Combs High School, was assaulted outside a Halloween party in Queen Creek and taken to a hospital in critical condition.

Oct. 30

Lord died from his injuries two days after being assaulted. An homicide investigation into his death was opened.

Nov. 14

The FBI joined the Preston Lord investigation, and a $10,000 reward was offered for information leading to an arrest in the case.

Nov. 18

A 16-year-old boy was attacked by multiple people in a desert area near Wagon Wheel Road and Sun Dance Drive in San Tan Valley.

Nov. 30

The Queen Creek Police Department said it was making progress in the Lord investigation, noting it had received hundreds of tips through the FBI.

Dec. 22

Queen Creek Police Chief Randy Brice defended the lengthy Lord investigation, which had nearly reached the two-month mark without any arrests. The Arizona Republic previously reported possible links between Lord’s death and a group of youths known as the Gilbert Goons, who have been connected to a string of violent assaults in the East Valley.

Dec. 26

Gilbert police learned about the October 2022 assault near Guadalupe Road and Freestone Parkway.

Dec. 28

Queen Creek PD announced it submitted charges against seven suspects in the Lord case to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office. The list of names, which has not been released, included adults and minors.

Jan. 3, 2024

Gilbert Police Chief Michael Soelberg responded to the charges submitted in the Lord case and denounced youth violence in his city. Soelberg didn’t mention the Gilbert Goons by name but said the department was investigating prior cases involving youths in the past two years to see if there were any connections.

Jan. 5

Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said the review into charges stemming from Lord’s death would be a lengthy process. Mitchell said her prosecutors had to sift through an 1,800-page police report and 2,000 pieces of evidence, including 600 videos.

Jan. 8

The Gilbert Police Department said it was investigating eight youth violence cases that could involve the Gilbert Goons, including four that were recently reopened. The department said the four new cases came from incidents that were previously unreported and came about through online tips. Police added that the investigations would determine if the Gilbert Goons could be classified as a criminal street gang under Arizona law.

Jan. 9

The Gilbert Town Council unanimously voted to create a three-member subcommittee to address the issue of youth violence. Chief Michael Soelberg said during the meeting that police were investigating nine active cases of youth violence, one more than reported a day earlier.

Jan. 10

Five arrests were announced in connection with violent attacks on minors in the East Valley.

In one case, Jacob Pennington, 20, of Gilbert was arrested for his involvement in the Nov. 18, 2023, attack in San Tan Valley. Pennington said in a post-arrest interview he was associated with the Gilbert Goons, according to a probable cause statement. It was the first connection announced by police between the Gilbert Goons and the violent attacks.

In a separate case, Christopher Fantastic, 18, Aris Arredondo, 18, and two 16-year-olds were arrested on aggravated robbery and aggravated assault charges for the Aug. 18, 2023, attack outside the In-N-Out Burger on Market Street in Gilbert.

Jan. 11

The Gilbert Police Department asked for the public’s help in identifying suspects in five youth violence cases. Police released photos and more information on those cases, two of which were reopened while three others were previously unreported.

Jan. 11

A 17-year-old boy was arrested in connection with the May 29, 2023, assault on a minor in Mesa near Val Vista Drive and Pueblo Avenue. The incident was reported to the Mesa Police Department by the victim’s stepfather a week before the arrest.

Jan. 12

Garrett Bagshaw, 18, was arrested in connection with the Nov. 18, 2023, attack on a 16-year-old boy near Wagon Wheel Road and Sun Dance Drive in San Tan Valley. It was the second arrest in the case.

Jan. 16

Christopher Fantastic, already in custody for the Aug. 18, 2023, attack in Gilbert, was arrested for aggravated assault in the May 29, 2023, incident near Val Vista Drive and Pueblo Avenue in Mesa.

Jan. 24

Kyler Renner, 18, was arrested in connection with two 2022 assaults, one from Nov. 22 near Higley and Riggs roads and one from Dec. 3 at a downtown Gilbert parking garage. Gage Garrison, 18, and an unnamed 17-year-old were also arrested in connection with the parking garage attack.

Jan. 25

A second suspect, an unnamed 17-year-old, was arrested in connection with the Nov. 22, 2022, assault near Higley and Riggs roads.

Jan. 27

A juvenile reported that he was assaulted by multiple people at a neighborhood park near Baseline Road and Val Vista Drive.

Jan. 30

Deleon Haynes, 19, and an unnamed 17-year-old were arrested for their alleged roles in the Aug. 18, 2023, assault at an In-N-Out Burger parking lot in Gilbert. Four people were previously arrested for the same incident.

Jan. 31

Jacob Pennington, 20, William Owen Hines, 18, and a 17-year-old were arrested and charged with two counts of aggravated assault for their roles in a Dec. 2, 2022, incident near Williams Field Road and Market Street.

The same 17-year-old was also arrested in connection with a Dec. 3, 2022, assault in a parking garage near Gilbert Road and Vaughn Avenue in downtown Gilbert.

Hines and the 17-year-old were also arrested in connection with an assault outside a residence near Higley and Riggs roads on Nov. 22, 2022.

Feb. 1

Two Gilbert youth violence suspects were indicted on assault charges in a pair of incidents that were previously unreported.

William Owen Hines, 18, was indicted on one count of vehicular aggravated assault in connection with an incident from July 6, 2023, that left a victim injured.

The other suspect indicted was 18-year-old Noah Lee Pennington, who faces two counts of aggravated assault and one count of disorderly conduct. His incident is said to have occurred in Gilbert on Dec. 16, 2022.

Feb. 7

The parents of Preston Lord broke their silence on their son’s death, releasing a statement.

“The loss of our son is impossible to bear, and we understand that there is work to be done to achieve justice for Preston,” Lord’s parents, Nick Lord and Autumn Curiel, said.

“We are exercising patience to ensure the best possible outcome and ask members of the community and the media to do the same.”

Feb. 7

Gage Garrison, 19, and Cody Kostoryz, 18, were arrested on assault and burglary charges in connection with a Dec. 17, 2022, incident near Higley and Elliot roads. Garrison had previously been arrested for the Dec. 3, 2022, attack.

Police also submitted longform charges against 18-year-old Nolan Russell, who lives out of state.

Feb. 15

The Mesa Police Department asked for the public’s help in identifying a third suspect in a 2023 Mesa youth violence case.

Christopher Fantastic, 18, and a 17-year-old were already arrested in the case.

Feb. 20

A 17-year-old girl was arrested in connection with a September 2023 assault.

The suspect is facing one count of aggravated robbery, one count of assault and one count of disorderly conduct.

Feb. 22

Gage Garrison, 19, and Cody Kostoryz, 18, were indicted on one count of aggravated assault for an attack that occurred on Dec. 17, 2023.

Kyler Renner, 19, was indicted on six counts stemming from a traffic stop March 29, 2023, in Gilbert.

Feb. 22

Twenty-year-old Jacob Pennington was arrested for the third time. This one was for an attack that took place in a parking lot near Williams Field Road and Santan Village Parkway.

It was the same attack the 17-year-old girl was arrested for on Feb. 20.

Feb. 27

The Arizona Legislature decided against voting for a bill to ban brass knuckles. The bill was spearheaded by Connor Jarnagan, 17, who was a victim of a brass knuckles attack by the Gilbert Goons.

March 6

Four suspects were charged in the death of Preston Lord.

Talan Renner, Dominic Turner, Talyn Vigil and William Owen Hines were all named as suspects in a press conference by Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. 

Each of the four were charged with first-degree murder, felony murder and kidnapping. Turner was additionally charged with aggravated robbery.

March 7

Three more arrests in Preston Lord’s death were announced.

Taylor Sherman, Jacob Meisner and Treston Billey face first-degree murder and kidnapping charges. Meisner also faced aggravated robbery charges.

March 13

Six of the seven people accused of killing 16-year-old Preston Lord at a Halloween party in October in Queen Creek pleaded not guilty.

The seventh suspect, Treston Billey, pleaded not guilty the following day.

March 19

A 15-year-old suspect was arrested for an assault on a juvenile on Jan. 27, according to the Gilbert Police Department.

The assault, which was carried out by multiple people, allegedly occurred at a neighborhood park near Baseline Road and Val Vista Drive.

April 12

Talyn Vigil, one of the seven suspects indicted in the murder of Preston Lord, posted bond and was released from jail.

Vigil will subjected to electronic monitoring during his release.

May 2

The Gilbert Goons were officially designated as a criminal street gang, according to a press conference led by multiple agency leaders. Gilbert Police Chief Michael Soelberg said he wasn’t sure how this would impact prosecutorial decisions against alleged members of the gang.

May 3

Clayton Oden, 19, was arrested for his alleged role in the October 2022 assault near Guadalupe Road and Freestone Parkway in Gilbert. Police hadn’t learned about the incident until Dec. 26, 2023.

May 23

The Chandler City Council passed two ordinances hoping to cut down on youth violence in the city.

One prohibited unruly gatherings and the other forbade minors from having brass knuckles.

Aug. 7

The first prison sentence was handed down for a suspect associated with East Valley youth violence.

Noah Lee Pennington, 19, was sentenced to three years in prison for his role in incidents between December 2022 and May 2023.

Pennington, who was found guilty on two counts of aggravated assault, one count of aggravated robbery and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, will be subject to two years of supervised probation upon his release.

Aug. 14

Valley law enforcement agencies aimed to have better reporting of youth violence incidents that have rocked parts of the metro area over the past couple of years by releasing a new campaign.

The “Report, Don’t Repost” campaign wants parents and children who witness, hear about or see videos on social media to notify authorities and keep communities safe.

Sept. 4

Ten months after Preston Lord was beaten to death in a case that sparked outrage across the Valley, his parents sat down with a Phoenix TV station to discuss their unimaginable ordeal.

Nick Lord and Melissa Ciconte, Preston’s father and stepmother, shared stories about their son’s life, and about losing him, in an interview with ABC15’s Ashley Holden. Melissa also read a touching note from Preston’s mother, Autumn Curiel.

This story was originally published Jan. 12, 2024, and is being updated with new developments.

Follow @KTAR923