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9 SAY CHEESE! DECEMBER BY DAVID IVERSEN
10 HIGHLIGHT FACTORY APRIL BY DAVID IVERSEN
surveillance footage placing Logan’s Kia Optima at the scene, a fresh bullet hole in the vehicle and .40-caliber rounds matching shell casings recovered along the route. Logan apologized during sentencing and will be eligible for release in 2029. 7 HELD TO ACCOUNT NOVEMBER BY ELIAS WEISS
To kick off our year in review, we took a look at the stories that mattered most to our readers. To curate this list, we looked at the top 10 most read stories of the year. 1 KILLED ON CAMERA FEBRUARY BY DAVID IVERSEN
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A nationwide shredded-cheese recall reached Maricopa after the FDA expanded a sweeping voluntary action covering more than 260,000 cases of mozzarella and blended cheeses produced through Great Lakes Cheese Company. Regulators said metal fragments were found in a supplier’s raw materials, prompting an October recall that later widened to include dozens of products sold under major private- label brands across 31 states. The recall affected retailers throughout Arizona, including Maricopa’s Sprouts and Walmart stores. Local representatives said all impacted items were pulled from shelves and replaced with new inventory once they confirmed the affected lots had been removed. Consumers were instructed to discard or return the recalled cheeses for refunds.
What began as a father filming his sons’ flag football games quickly grew into one of Maricopa’s most prolific grassroots sports media efforts. In just its first year, Ruiz Sports Videos produced more than a thousand highlight clips spanning youth leagues, high school matchups and citywide exhibitions. Scouts took notice of the content, with at least two local athletes receiving scholarship offers after Ruiz posted their footage. Working nights after his full-time job in education, Ruiz shot and edited every reel himself, adding graphics and full-game uploads while fielding requests from tournaments across the region. His work built a new platform for young athletes in a city that lacked one, and Ruiz said he intends to keep Maricopa as the hub of a growing operation.
metro-area operations, DHS launched a new “Worst of the Worst” database that included two arrests tied to the city, and federal authorities captured a former Stanfield resident listed as an ICE “Most Wanted Fugitive” in the 2022 killing of his girlfriend. 3 MIRACLE, THEN MOURNING AUGUST BY ELIAS WEISS Two months after surviving a 400-foot fall near Sedona that drew international attention, former Maricopa resident Janelle Banda died by suicide in Pinal County. Banda, 32, had been rescued in June after disappearing during a camping trip at the Edge of the World, where a Pinal County Sheriff’s Office helicopter crew found her injured but alive after two and a half days in the canyon. Her death occurred near Hunt Highway and East Franklin Road and was confirmed by the Pinal County Medical Examiner’s Office. The loss stunned those who had followed her rescue, which had been widely described as miraculous after she endured extreme heat, cold and severe dehydration before being found. 4 CALLED TO DUTY JUNE BY DAVID IVERSEN 64,505
years. War Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Army had reached its best figures since 2010, attributing the rebound to President Donald J. Trump’s reelection, new preparatory initiatives and strategic changes following missed recruiting goals in 2022 and 2023. 5 TRAGEDY ON THE TRACKS FEBRUARY BY ELIAS WEISS
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A robbery at the Chase Bank on John Wayne Parkway prompted a major police response before officers arrested 40-year-old Cesar Sanchez within minutes of the holdup. Police said Sanchez passed a note to a teller claiming to have a gun and demanding money before fleeing the branch. Witness descriptions led officers to Sanchez nearby, where he was detained without incident and later identified by bank staff. Investigators recovered the stolen cash after Sanchez dropped an envelope containing the money as he was taken into custody, according to court records. No firearm was found. Sanchez was charged with felony robbery and pleaded not guilty in Pinal County Superior Court. He remained in custody on a secured $50,000 bond and was ordered to avoid weapons, the bank and the alleged victim. Prosecutors signaled they may use prior convictions to impeach Sanchez if he testifies as the case proceeded to pretrial hearings in mid-December. 8 CHARGED AND RECHARGED JANUARY BY BRIAN PETERSHEIM JR.
An armed confrontation at the Circle K near Alterra escalated into a shootout that left Maricopa Police Officer Sebastian Sanchez seriously wounded and 37-year-old Keith Prock dead. Investigators said Prock, a known violent felon, opened fire on Sanchez as officers approached him outside the store, just minutes after nearby schools released students for the day. Sanchez survived multiple gunshot wounds and spent a week in the hospital before returning home to recover. Authorities later identified Prock and detailed his extensive criminal history alongside a public digital footprint that showed contrasting glimpses of family life and erratic behavior. The case returned to public attention when police released body-camera footage capturing the moment Prock shot Sanchez and the gunfire that killed Prock. The video became InMaricopa’s most viewed YouTube upload of 2025, drawing more than 512,000 views. 2 SCOUT’S DISHONOR MARCH BY DAVID IVERSEN
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Local 16-year-old Bonaventure Molina-Roberts was killed after being struck by a train in Maricopa’s Heritage District. Police and fire crews found him on the tracks near the city’s Amtrak station, where he was initially believed to be an adult before investigators confirmed his identity and age. Union Pacific said he had been walking on the tracks rather than in a designated crossing, and its police department handled the investigation. The train crew was not injured. 6 ROAD RAGE RECKONING MARCH BY DAVID IVERSEN
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A road-rage confrontation in Casa Grande ended with former Maricopa High School quarterback Damian Logan fired multiple rounds into an occupied vehicle before fleeing the scene. Investigators said the shooting began after a dispute at a McDonald’s and continued into a nearby subdivision, where as many as 10 shots struck the victims’ car. No one was seriously injured. Two days later, the Pinal Regional SWAT team arrested the 18-year-old at a home in Maricopa’s Desert Cedars neighborhood, recovering firearms, ammunition and clothing linked to the case. Logan ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated assault and one count of drive-by shooting. A judge sentenced him to five years in state prison, with four years of probation to follow. Evidence in court records included
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A staffer at the AutoZone on Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway was accused of running a battery-return scheme that investigators said netted him more than $2,300 in fraudulent refunds. According to an AutoZone divisional investigator, 33-year-old Jorge-Leonel Mendez admitted during a phone interview that he processed multiple fake warranty returns and kept the cash. He later told police he did it because he needed money for rent. Officers filed a felony theft charge, which carries a potential prison term of more than two years. Court records for the case were not available, but public filings show Mendez was evicted from his Maricopa residence in May.
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Federal agents arrested a suspected cartel scout just south of Maricopa, part of a broader Casa Grande station operation that unfolded in late February. Agents said they encountered the Mexican national in the Maricopa Mountains on Feb. 24 and found observation equipment commonly used by cartel lookouts. During questioning, the man admitted crossing the border illegally and was linked by investigators to the Los Memos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. The year saw unprecedented immigration- enforcement activity across the city. ICE convoys were spotted moving through Maricopa during
LET’S
THAT NEW YEAR’S PROJECT
More than two dozen JROTC cadets from Maricopa High School and Desert Sunrise High School enlisted in the U.S. military as the class of 2025 graduated, marking a standout year for the district’s programs. Senior Cadet Julius Moore became the first to sign an enlistment contract, choosing the Marine Corps with plans to enter military police. Other cadets cited mentorship, structure and family service traditions as motivations for joining. The enlistments coincided with the U.S. military’s strongest recruiting numbers in 15
SCAN FOR DEALS “It’s simple: Neighbors helping Neighbors.”
InMaricopa.com | Janaury 2026
Janaury 2026 | InMaricopa.com
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