Officials: Man admits to shooting strangers he believed were involved in ‘prior criminal activity’

MESA, Ariz. (AZFamily/Gray News) — Police in Arizona arrested a 65-year-old man after they said he shot and killed a woman and injured her son in the parking lot of a store on Monday.

Police said the suspect, Kenneth Montgomery, and the victims did not know each other.

Around 9:30 a.m. Monday, police said they were called by 27-year-old Albert Leotta, who reported that he and his mother, 61-year-old Antoinette Leotta, had been shot in the parking lot of a Hobby Lobby store. Officials said Albert Leotta and his mother were in two separate vehicles parked next to each other when the shooting happened.

Medics took Antoinette Leotta out of her vehicle and pronounced her dead. Albert Leotta was taken to a hospital to be treated for gunshot wounds he suffered to both legs, according to police.

Police said Montgomery drove away before police arrived. Officers gathered information from witnesses about Montgomery and the description of his pickup truck.

About two hours after the shooting, court documents obtained by AZFamily said officers found Montgomery reportedly climbing into the bed of a stranger’s pickup truck at another location and arrested him. Officers then located Montgomery’s truck where they said they found a bloody handgun on the dashboard.

According to documents, Montgomery admitted to buying ammunition shortly before the shooting and then going to the parking lot where he sought out two cars he “thought were involved in prior criminal activity.” He reportedly told investigators he parked his truck in front of the victims’ vehicles and “unloaded” his gun, firing all of the bullets he had loaded in the gun. Officers corroborated the story with 10 case shellings found at the scene.

When investigators asked if he intended to kill the two victims, Montgomery reportedly responded with, “G**d*** right. Anybody would have.” Officials also said he did not feel guilty after deciding to shoot them earlier that morning, despite there being no connection between himself and the two.

Montgomery was booked into the Maricopa County jail on various charges including second-degree murder and aggravated assault. He’s being held on a $1,000,000 bond.