The man who shot and killed a Pima County constable, an apartment manager and a man in the neighboring apartment had been reported to authorities months before after he threatened neighbors, police reports show.
In one incident, a property manager told police Gavin Lee Stansell called her on the phone after she sent him an email about the threats and he threatened her life, police reports show.
On Aug. 25, Constable Deborah Martinez-Garibay and Lind Commons apartment manager Angela Fox-Heath, 28, were serving Stansell, 24, an eviction notice when he opened fire and fatally struck Fox-Heath.
After the constable was unaccounted for, SWAT team officers made entry into Stansellβs apartment and found Martinez-Garibay dead with gunshot wounds. Stansell was also found inside the apartment with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
The search of Stansellβs apartment also revealed he had entered a neighboring apartment and fatally shot Elijah Miranda, 25. Miranda, who did not live at the complex, had been visiting his friendβs apartment to escape the heat.
The eviction was being served because of threats made by Stansell to other apartment managers, records said.
A firearm, ammunition, cartridge cases and magazines were seized by officers along with photographs and cellphones from Stansellβs apartment after the mass shooting, according to a search warrant return filed in court.
Stansell had been previously reported by neighbors to Tucson police two months before the fatal shooting. According to police records, on June 10, a neighbor had called police after Stansell told her that if her boyfriend was cutting toenails outside, he was going to make him eat them.
The police officer assigned to the call attempted to call Stansell three different times, but was unable to reach him, the records say.
Stansell was reported to Tucson police a second time a month later. On July 28, officers responded to a call that Stansell had reportedly made threats to kill the former property manager.
Officers spoke to a neighbor who said Stansell was a βconstant issueβ and would open his door and βcock his gun,β police records say. The neighbor told police that although he had never seen a gun, he could βhear it being cocked.β
The neighbor also said he suspected Stansell had damaged his property, but the neighbor had never actually seen him doing it, police records say.
Another neighbor also told officers she had heard the gun being cocked, but had never seen the firearm, police records say. She said Stansell had damaged her property, but she had never caught him in the act.
Stansellβs behavior had been brought to the attention of the then-property manager after a neighbor complained about him. The manager attempted to address the situation, but the number on file for Stansell was disconnected, so she emailed him, police records say.
The manager said she received a phone call from a man who said, βyou know who this isβ and said he was responding to the email he received, which led the manager to believe it was Stansell on the phone, police records say.
The manager explained the situation and at one point during the discussion, the man on the phone said, βIβm going to kill you,β police records say. The manager then told him she was going to call the police.
The officer who responded to the call said that the manager would send him all the emails exchanged and the recorded phone call. The manager played the recording for the officer, who said he clearly heard a male voice say, βIβm going to kill you,β police records say.
The manager was also sure that it was Stansell on the phone and wished to prosecute him.
Officers attempted to make contact with Stansell, but despite knocking at his door and calling him, they were unable to contact hin, police records say.
The property manager was later terminated, and officers never received the evidence, police records say. Several attempts were made to contact her, but they werenβt successful, the police report says.
A stop-and-interview notice to officers had been issued for Stansell regarding the death threats that were made.
Not much information is available online about Stansell, other than he was cited for three traffic violations in Marana in 2021.
Court records indicated he failed to appear for court hearings and his license was suspended. Some social media postings indicated he may have lived as a youth in Hawaii.
