In a long-anticipated move, a grand jury indicted Phoenix inmate Robert Jones yesterday in the slayings of six people in two Tucson robberies last year.
He now stands accused along with Scott Nordstrom in the Moon Smoke Shop and Firefighters Union Hall killings.
"We've all been waiting for this for quite some time," said Carson Noel, whose mother, Carol Lynn Noel, was shot to death at the union hall June 13, 1996.
Police and prosecutors have called Jones, 27, a suspect in the local case for several months.
But he was not charged until prosecutors secured the testimony of David Nordstrom, who agreed to take the stand against his brother, Scott Nordstrom, and Jones as part of a plea deal.
A Pima County grand jury first heard testimony against Jones on June 17, sources said. However, the proceedings were not completed until yesterday, when the panel handed up a 15-count indictment against him.
He faces six first-degree murder charges and nine counts of attempted murder, armed robbery, burglary and aggravated assault, according to a statement released yesterday by Deputy County Attorney David White. Jones could face the death penalty if convicted.
Detectives will serve an arrest warrant on Jones at the Maricopa County Jail, where he is being held on an unrelated murder charge.
Tucson police arrested David Nordstrom, 27, and his brother Scott Nordstrom, 29, in January, and a Pima County grand jury indicted both on six counts of murder.
David Nordstrom went to police late last year and told them his older brother and Robert Jones killed two people at the smoke shop May 30, 1996, and four at the union hall two weeks later, court documents indicate.
He pleaded guilty to armed robbery in the smoke shop case and a judge dismissed the union hall counts against him because of a lack of evidence. He faces five years in prison.
David Nordstrom, Scott Nordstrom and Jones all declined interviews last night.
Jones is jailed in Phoenix in lieu of $1.4 million bond, awaiting trial in the Aug. 23, 1996, death of a Phoenix retiree. Richard Roels was killed during the burglary of his upper middle-class home in central Phoenix.
Police arrested Jones and Stephen Coats, 35, of Scottsdale the next day after a 70-mile chase, with speeds up to 130 mph, through Phoenix, Tempe and Paradise Valley.
"It brings it right back again. You try to deal with it every day . . . but when his name keeps coming back again and thinking about the whole thing again it's hard to swallow," Roels' daughter, Ryanne Costello said of Jones' indictment. She was stunned when she recently learned of the Tucson murders.
"I'm everywhere from sad to angry. The first thing I thought of is six other families having to go through what I've gone through," said Costello, who was six months pregnant when her father was killed. "There's been a lot of people affected."
David Nordstrom said he met Robert Jones in prison in Douglas and introduced him to his brother in April of 1996, court records state.
Court documents indicate David Nordstrom told police he was with Jones, whom he called a close friend, on May 30 when they stole a 9mm pistol from a car parked at Tucson Medical Center, 5301 E. Grant Road.
That same evening, a smoke shop customer, Clarence Odell III, 47, and an employee, Thomas Hardman, 26, were killed at the shop, 120 W. Grant Road. A 34-year-old employee, shot in the face and the arm, survived.
Casings found at the scene suggest that a 9mm gun, similar to the one stolen, could have been used, court records state.
Nordstrom also told investigators Jones came to his house on June 13 and told him he had just robbed the union hall, 2264 E. Benson Highway, and killed several people, court documents state.
Slain were bartender Noel, 50; and customers Arthur "Taco" Bell, 54; his wife, Judy Bell, 46; and Maribeth Munn, 53.
Investigators determined that Jones fit a description given to police by the surviving victim of the Moon Smoke Shop shootings. However, his hair appeared to be naturally red and the victim described the men as having dark hair.
When Phoenix police arrested Jones in the Phoenix slaying, they found a bottle of dark hair dye, records state.
On Jan. 14, Tucson police seized a 1962 Ford pickup truck, owned by Jones, which matched the description of a vehicle witnesses described leaving the smoke shop after the shootings.
For the following months, Jones remained an unindicted suspect, although David Nordstrom's plea agreement specifically referred to Jones' alleged involvement in the slayings.
Julee Sanchez, a bartender at the union hall, said a close-knit crowd of regulars talks about the case daily. And, she said, the indictment came as no surprise.
"I think everyone knew it was going to happen," she said.
Harley Kurlander, one of two attorneys representing Scott Nordstrom, said he believes Jones will stand trial separately from the older brother, who has denied being involved in the slayings.
Victims' relatives said they can wait even if it takes years to try the accused killers.
"I want it done correctly. I don't want it screwed up because it's being done quickly," said Noel, the union hall bartenders' son.
He said the indictment is simply the first step in what promises to be a drawn-out event.
"It's going to be a rocky year coming up."
And the pain simply hasn't let up.
"They said the first year would be the hardest. So far, I've found the second year is. I just miss my mom more and more every day."
