The first arrests tied to attacks on teenagers by a gang called the “Gilbert Goons” were announced Wednesday by southeast Valley police agencies.
The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office and Gilbert police separately arrested three adults and two juveniles in two attacks first detailed in a December investigation by The Arizona Republic, which led authorities to reopen multiple cases.
Police and prosecutors confirmed the five people arrested were accused of involvement in gang beatings on high school students and indicated more arrests could be coming.
One of the people arrested admitted being part of the Gilbert Goons and attacking teens, a prosecutor said.
Both attacks were among a string of video-recorded beatings in southeast Valley communities by a gang of affluent teenagers called the Gilbert Goons that have gone unchecked for more than a year. Although police arrested a Goon for two vicious attacks with brass knuckles in 2022, officers did not tie him to a larger group of assailants described by victims.
Parents, students and community activists say members of the Goons were involved in the Oct. 28 fatal beating of 16-year-old Preston Lord at a Halloween party in Queen Creek.
Brass knuckles, beatings, fear:Random attacks on teens loom over Preston Lord murder case
Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb took to social media on Wednesday to say deputies arrested 20-year-old Jacob Pennington of Gilbert in a Nov. 19 group beating of a 16-year-old Casteel High School student near San Tan Mountain Regional Park in an area known as Wagon Wheel.
“So, this morning, PCSO arrested a suspect in the aggravated assault … on a teenager here in our county,” Lamb said in a video statement. “This is an ongoing investigation, so I can’t give you a lot of answers. There could potentially be a few more arrests stemming from this crime.”
The Republic published a video of the attack in December, which occurred two weeks after Lord was beaten. It was recorded on a cellphone, and footage was shared privately among a small group of high school students.
The video, just over a minute long, shows a group forming a loose circle around the victim, with at least one using a cellphone to illuminate the tableau. The attackers hit the boy and knocked him down as he attempted to retreat. When the victim ran, his attackers gave chase and pummeled him with feet and fists as he fell to the ground.
Lamb said the boy sustained minor injuries from the attack and declined medical assistance. He said the boy could not immediately identify his attackers to deputies, who responded to reports of an altercation.
The Sheriff’s Office said the detective assigned to this case was part of an “information sharing group” on the attacks led by the Gilbert Police Department, and they are cooperating in overlapping investigations.
A Pinal County prosecutor said during Pennington’s initial court appearance on Wednesday that he “admitted he is associated with a violent group of people who are assaulting and injuring minor kids in the Valley.”
As part of Pennington’s release conditions, a judge prohibited Pennington from contacting the victim and anyone known to be a member of or associated with the Gilbert Goons. The judge set Pennington’s bond at $5,000.
Pennington could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. He has been identified in at least one other video-recorded attack.
His mother, Alisha Tidwell, told The Republic in a December phone interview that she was angry her son was identified in private social media posts connecting him to Lord’s death. She denied his involvement and said he was out of state at the time of the party where Lord was beaten.
Tidwell, however, would not talk about beating videos in which her son could be identified.
“The truth will come out,” she said. “We have no guilt. We have no guilt.”
Who are the ‘Gilbert Goons’?What to know about teen gang accused of vicious attacks
Gilbert arrests 4 in connection with parking lot attack
Gilbert police confirmed Wednesday the arrest of Christopher Fantastic in the Aug. 18 beating of a teenager at the Gilbert In-N-Out Burger. The 18-year-old faces assault and robbery charges.
Hours later, police said three more people were arrested: Aris Arrendondo, 18, and two juveniles, who were initially cited and released Tuesday night, according to police documents obtained by The Republic. They face the same charges as Fantastic.
Police for hours on Wednesday maintained Fantastic was the only person arrested. But nearly 30 minutes after The Republic provided documents showing police had cited and released three others, officials acknowledged making additional arrests.
Gilbert police officials confirmed two juveniles and two adults were taken into custody.
The juveniles are being referred to the Maricopa County Juvenile Court, police said. The case remains active and officials said they are still working to identify others involved in the attack.
Cases under review:Gilbert police reopen investigations after The Republic connects ‘Goon’ beatings
The case involves the beating of Richard Kuehner’s then-16-year-old son, which The Republic first reported in December. It is one of several attacks involving members of the Gilbert Goons that Gilbert police initially shelved or failed to connect to group assaults.
At Fantastic’s initial appearance in court on Wednesday, prosecutors with the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office said the attack was planned to get back at the victim for reporting threats he was receiving to school officials. There were other accomplices in the case, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said the attack was one of several in Gilbert carried out by a group of people that Fantastic and several other adults and juveniles belonged to. The term “Gilbert Goons” was not used.
The judge said prosecutors needed more evidence linking Fantastic to a group of violent young people to justify the $100,000 bond the state requested. She ordered Fantastic held on a $25,000 bond.
Although attack videos reviewed by The Republic feature an overwhelming number of white teenagers beating other students, Fantastic is Black.
The Republic is not naming juveniles, even in cases where they were convicted of assaults and other crimes, because they are underage. None has been charged or identified by authorities as suspects in Lord’s murder.
Kuehner said his son’s shoes were stolen during the beating and described the perpetrators as “kicking and stomping” his son. Kuehner said his son arrived home from In-N-Out bleeding and visibly shaken. Kuehner took him to the emergency room and was billed about $14,000.
His son had faced threats from several kids a few weeks after enrolling at Perry High School in Gilbert. A group of boys went to his house, apparently intending to assault his son. Kuehner, who was walking his dog, intervened and scared off the group after his son informed him of the situation.
A report was filed with Gilbert police, Kuehner said, but the threats to his son continued. It got so bad he decided to withdraw his son from school and send him to live overseas with his mom. It changed all of their lives while the perpetrators continued without being held accountable, he said.
Help sought:Gilbert police ask public to help identify attackers in Aug. 18 In-N-Out beating
“That’s what frustrates me,” Kuehner said. “My son has suffered and had to change his whole life as a young man because of these kids. And they just go on like nothing happened, and they’ll probably do it again.”
Kuehner’s case was listed as inactive for months, but Gilbert police reopened it after The Republic’s investigation.
Most of the Goons’ attacks occurred in Gilbert, including at least four at the In-N-Out at San Tan Village Parkway and East Williams Field Road, records and interviews show. The attacks were strikingly similar and involved similar victims and many of the same perpetrators, who posted photos and videos of beatings on social media.
A father wonders and asks:If Gilbert police had acted sooner, would Preston Lord be alive?
Gilbert police Chief Michael Soelberg said officers never connected the attacks because victims did not specifically mention “Gilbert Goons” — and the department did not have police reports associating the Goons “to any alleged criminal activity.”
Soelberg said Tuesday the department had nine active investigations related to teen violence. Four are reopened investigations. The others were previously unreported.
The Gilbert Town Council on Tuesday created a subcommittee to investigate teen violence. Mayor Brigette Petersen, who has remained mostly silent about the attacks, said the issue keeps her awake at night.
“This issue has gutted me,” she said.
Charges referred:Queen Creek police seek charges against 7 teens, adults in death of Preston Lord
Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter for The Republic. Reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8694. Follow him on X @robertanglen.
Elena Santa Cruz is a criminal justice reporter for The Republic. Reach her at elena.santacruz@gannett.com or 480-466-2265. Follow her on X @ecsantacruz3.