Porfirio Medina, a 45-year-old Hispanic man, was fatally shot late on the night of August 21, 2025, near downtown Phoenix. At approximately 10:45 p.m., Phoenix police officers were dispatched to the area of Seventh Street and Buckeye Road after receiving a report of a shooting. When officers reached the scene, they found Medina suffering from at least one gunshot wound.
Emergency personnel transported Medina to a nearby hospital in an effort to save his life.
His injuries proved fatal, however, and he was pronounced dead at the hospital. The shooting occurred near a heavily traveled part of the city, but authorities did not immediately disclose whether Medina had been walking, standing near a business, or interacting with anyone shortly before the gunfire. Investigators also did not publicly reveal a possible motive or explain what may have led to the confrontation.
Phoenix homicide detectives took control of the investigation and began working to identify the person responsible. During the initial days following the killing, police released few details about the circumstances and did not publicly name a suspect. The department asked anyone with information to contact Silent Witness, indicating that investigators were still attempting to reconstruct what happened and determine who had been present when Medina was shot.
The investigation eventually led detectives to a juvenile suspect. On September 3, 2025, Phoenix police announced that a 16-year-old boy had been taken into custody in connection with Medina’s death. Because the accused was a minor, authorities did not release his name. Police referred the teenager to the Juvenile Court Center, and news reports stated that he faced a second-degree murder charge in connection with the fatal shooting.
The teenager was reportedly the person police were seeking when members of the Phoenix Police Department’s Special Assignment Unit served a search warrant at an apartment complex near 17th Avenue and Buckeye Road on September 2. Officers said they knocked on an apartment door and were met with gunfire. Two officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries during the ensuing incident, including one who was struck by shrapnel. Three people were reportedly inside the apartment, and two men who emerged were detained. An adult identified as Francisco Torres was wounded, hospitalized and later booked into jail in connection with the gunfire directed at police. Authorities did not identify Torres as the person accused of killing Medina; reports instead indicated that the juvenile sought during the warrant operation was the suspect connected to Medina’s shooting.
Although an arrest was made, officials released little information about the evidence that led detectives to the teenager. They did not publicly describe the relationship, if any, between Medina and the accused, nor did they disclose whether the shooting resulted from a robbery, dispute, chance encounter or another circumstance. No detailed account of witness statements, surveillance recordings, recovered weapons or forensic evidence was included in the publicly available announcements.
Because the accused entered the juvenile justice system, information regarding subsequent hearings and court proceedings has remained limited. Publicly available reports do not establish that the case has proceeded to a completed trial, conviction or sentencing. The arrest and referral represented an important development in the investigation, but the precise circumstances surrounding Medina’s final moments and the full legal outcome for the juvenile suspect have not been publicly detailed.
