PHOENIX (AZFamily) — A suspect is in custody after a man was stabbed to death in south Phoenix on New Year’s Day.
Around 2 a.m., officers received reports of someone being stabbed near 12th Place and Southern Avenue. Police arrived and found Gilbert Ray Ayonayon II, 34, stabbed at least once. Ayonayon was rushed to the hospital, where he later died.
Witnesses at the scene identified Frank Joseph Martinez, 19, as the suspect. Investigators say once Martinez returned to the scene, he was taken into custody.
Frank Joseph Martinez, 19, was taken into custody in connection to a deadly stabbing in south Phoenix.(Arizona’s Family/Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office)
Martinez was booked on charges of first-degree murder and assault. Details about what led up to the stabbing or a possible motive have not yet been released.
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