In the early morning hours of December 8, 2023, Phoenix police were dispatched to central Phoenix after reports of gunfire near the 5300 block of North 27th Avenue, in the area of 27th Avenue and Missouri Avenue. As officers were heading toward that scene, they were advised that the vehicle connected to the incident had been located several blocks away, in the area of 26th Avenue and Pierson Street.
When they arrived at that second location, officers found an adult man inside or near the vehicle suffering from at least one gunshot wound; he was pronounced dead at the scene. The victim was later identified as Ray Sandfield, a 30-year-old Black / African American male.
Investigators believe that the shooting itself occurred in or around the intersection of 27th Avenue and Missouri Avenue, or nearby at 27th Avenue and Camelback Road, and that Sandfield’s vehicle was driven or moved to 26th Avenue and Pierson Street before officers arrived. This left two distinct scenes for detectives and crime-scene personnel to process: the original area where gunfire was reported and the secondary location where the vehicle and wounded victim were ultimately found. Streets in both areas were closed for several hours while detectives documented evidence, collected shell casings, and interviewed potential witnesses in an effort to reconstruct the sequence of events that led to the fatal shooting.
Publicly available records indicate that Sandfield’s death is one of many fatal shootings in Phoenix documented in gun-violence and homicide tracking databases. Memorial pages and obituary notices identify him more fully as Ray Anthony Sandfield II, born in June 1993 and residing in the greater Phoenix/Glendale area at the time of his death, and they show that family and friends have continued to mourn him, lighting virtual candles and leaving tributes online since the shooting. These remembrances frame his death not just as a police case number but as the loss of a son, relative, and friend whose killing added to the toll of gun violence in the region.
As for the investigation, Phoenix police immediately classified the incident as a homicide and turned the case over to detectives, but they did not release any information about a suspect, motive, or circumstances beyond the basic description of the shooting and the two locations involved. Law enforcement appeals have emphasized the need for community assistance: Silent Witness and Testigo Silencioso hotlines were publicized, with a reward of up to $1,000 offered for tips that lead to an arrest or indictment. As of the latest available reporting, there have been no public announcements of any arrests, and no suspect or suspects have been formally identified in open sources. The case therefore appears to remain an open homicide investigation, with authorities still seeking information from anyone who may have seen or heard something in the area around the time of the shooting.
