![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/PLFYG2UZKFHMBJSVR25UVEWUZQ.png\")
A gang member has been sentenced to life in prison for the December 2021 killing of Richard \u201cRicky\u201d Coss in Phoenix.(Maricopa County Attorney’s Office)<\/p>\nPHOENIX (AZFamily)<\/b> \u2014 A Valley gang member convicted of first-degree murder has been sentenced to life in prison nearly four years after the killing in north Phoenix, prosecutors announced Tuesday.<\/p>\n
A gang member has been sentenced to life in prison for the December 2021 killing of Richard \u201cRicky\u201d Coss in Phoenix.(Maricopa County Attorney’s Office)<\/p>\n
The Maricopa County Attorney\u2019s Office<\/a> said Keith McCollough was sentenced to natural life for the murder of Richard \u201cRicky\u201d Coss on Dec. 18, 2021. He was also ordered to spend 20.75 years in prison for first-degree burglary at Coss\u2019 home.<\/p>\n Authorities said McCollough was a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club when he and other masked suspects broke into an apartment near 23rd Avenue and Rose Garden Lane<\/a>, just north of the Loop 101, after a fight had reportedly broken out hours earlier.<\/p>\n The other suspects were previously identified as Carl Blazak and Jimmy Eslinger, both of whom were booked on murder charges and later convicted in Coss\u2019 death.<\/p>\n Police said the encounter with the group ended with Coss being killed by being shot in the heart. DNA evidence later pointed McCollough directly to the scene, prosecutors said. Witnesses reportedly testified that the attack was retaliation by the Hells Angels.<\/p>\n According to prosecutors, the investigation and trial faced intimidation and pressure from the biker gang, but ultimately, enough victims, witnesses and evidence came forward for convictions against all three men.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Hells Angels want to rule through fear,\u201d said Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. \u201cIn Maricopa County, we do not bow to intimidation or outlaw motorcycle gangs. This sentence sends a clear message that organized criminal violence will be met with organized justice. I am proud of the prosecutors, detectives, and especially the witnesses who stood strong against a culture of fear and helped bring the truth to light.\u201d<\/p>\n The attorney\u2019s office said Eslinger is currently serving 10 years for his role in the murder, while Blazak was sentenced to 10.5 years for the killing.<\/p>\n See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it<\/a>.<\/p>\n