On a tragic evening in Tucson, Arizona, the life of Arthur Floyd 'Taco' Bell, a 54-year-old man, was violently cut short. On June 13, 1996, Bell was at a local firefighters' union hall when two armed men entered the establishment. The ensuing events would leave an indelible mark on the community, as a robbery escalated into a quadruple homicide. Bell, along with three other individuals, became the unfortunate victims of a senseless act of violence.
The night of the incident, Arthur Bell
was in the company of his 46-year-old wife, Judy Bell, and another patron, 53-year-old Maribeth Munn. The bartender on duty was 50-year-old Carol Lynn Noel. Their ordinary evening was shattered by the arrival of Scott Douglas Nordstrom and Robert Glen Jones Jr., who proceeded to rob the union hall. In the course of the robbery, all four individuals present were shot and killed. The brutal nature of the crime sent shockwaves through Tucson as the community grappled with the loss of four of its members.
The investigation into the murders led law enforcement to Nordstrom and Jones. It was discovered that this violent outburst was part of a larger crime spree. Just two weeks prior, the pair had been involved in another robbery at a smoke shop that also resulted in two fatalities. Following their capture, both men were charged with the murders committed at the firefighters' union hall.
The legal proceedings that followed brought a measure of justice for the victims and their families. Scott Douglas Nordstrom and Robert Glen Jones Jr. were both tried and found guilty of the murders of Arthur Bell, Judy Bell, Carol Lynn Noel, and Maribeth Munn. Jones was sentenced to death and was executed by lethal injection on October 23, 2013. Nordstrom also received a death sentence for his role in the heinous crimes and is currently on death row.
