Dancers At An Arizona Club Feared They Were Being Targeted — And Then One Was Killed

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office is now recommending that Young beryllium charged pinch conspiracy to perpetrate first-degree execution and conspiracy to perpetrate kidnapping successful Vega’s death, according to a probable origin connection revenge past period successful that county’s superior court.

For Vega’s mother, nan latest improvement brought a measurement of relief.

“We’ve felt for illustration we’ve been drowning successful a oversea of despair and condolences for 2 and a half years,” Erika Pillsbury said. “And now we’ve been thrown a life preserver. The group that are responsible for murdering my small girl are hopefully going to look justice.”

Two different suspects person been accused successful Vega’s death. The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office revenge charges of first-degree murder, kidnapping, equipped robbery and theft against Jared Gray, according to a June 20 complaint. Gray was successful custody successful Georgia connected unrelated charges and has not been extradited to Arizona, a spokesperson for nan Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office said.

A 3rd person, Sencere Hayes, was charged successful November pinch first-degree murder, kidnapping, equipped robbery and theft successful relationship pinch Vega’s killing. He has pleaded not guilty.

Authorities person provided fewer specifications astir nan relationship betwixt nan men, though nan probable origin connection identified a geographic nexus — Chattanooga, Tennessee. Young is from nan city, nan connection says, and Hayes and Gray traveled to Phoenix from there.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment. A spokesperson for nan region attorney’s agency said it is reviewing imaginable charges against Young, 29, but would not remark connected nan robbery case, which it is prosecuting and is scheduled to return to proceedings connected July 29. It isn’t clear why nan lawsuit has taken truthful agelong to adjudicate.

Lawyers for Hayes and Young did not respond to requests for comment. Court records do not database an lawyer for Gray. In an question and reply pinch authorities, he denied ever having been to Arizona, nan probable origin connection shows.

A terrifying incident adjacent to home

At 4:15 a.m. connected Oct. 12, 2020, Vega was parking extracurricular her flat building aft activity erstwhile a masked man ran toward her, drew a weapon and demanded her belongings, according to a Phoenix Police Department incident report.

The man grabbed Vega’s telephone and held it to her look to effort and unlock it, but grounded because nan facial-recognition characteristic wasn’t group up, Vega’s mother recalled her girl telling her. When he ordered her to participate her PIN, Vega resisted, Pillsbury said.

“He shoved her to nan ground, told her he’d termination her and held nan weapon to her face,” Pillsbury said.

Mercedes Vega.Erika Pillsbury

Vega complied, Pillsbury said, and nan man took everything — car keys, wallet, telephone and a container holding hundreds of dollars. With nan telephone unlocked, nan man stole much money done a rate transportation app, according to nan report.

Vega was truthful distraught, Pillsbury recalled, that “you couldn’t locomotion up down her without her jumping.”

Within days, Pillsbury said, Vega moved location she thought had amended security. The caller flat was connected nan 2nd floor, Pillsbury said, and had a parking car shed that required a cardinal fob for access.

Three years later, that car shed was nan past spot Vega would beryllium seen alive.

Another dancer says she was apt tracked

Vega, who performed astatine nan Phoenix portion nine Le Girls and was redeeming to go a certified individual trainer, wasn’t nan venue’s only dancer who said they’d been targeted aft a shift. In nan months earlier and aft Vega’s robbery, 2 different women said a masked man held them up — aliases tried to clasp them up — astatine gunpoint, according to interviews pinch erstwhile dancers and constabulary reports.

One erstwhile dancer who said she was robbed didn’t cognize Vega well, but asked Vega to picture her attacker.

After Vega described a man pinch gloves, a skis disguise and a hoodie who was taller than her — Vega was 5-foot-8 — nan erstwhile dancer said she believed they’d apt been targeted by nan aforesaid person. (The female asked NBC News not to place her because she nary longer useful arsenic a dancer.)

Around 4:30 a.m. connected Nov. 2, 2019, she said, a masked assailant appeared successful beforehand of her aunt’s condo successful a quiet portion of Scottsdale, a able suburb eastbound of Phoenix, and pointed a weapon successful her face. He took her container and fled.

Afterward, nan female said, she banged truthful difficult connected her aunt’s beforehand doorway that her knuckles bled.