Suspect arrested in deaths of 2 men in Phoenix

Phoenix police arrested Leonard Hagiu on Wednesday on suspicion of murder after two men died because of injuries they received during a confrontation at a HomeTowne Studios Phoenix hotel on Feb. 10, court documents said.

Police responded to the hotel near Dunlap and 19th avenues for a reported shooting.

They found two injured men in a hotel room, later identified as Gerald Feistner and Rafed Al Izawi, who were taken to a hospital.

Feistner was found with a bullet wound, and Al Izawi had blunt force trauma to his head, according to a probable cause statement police filed in court.

Feistner died later the same day, and Al Izawi died Saturday.

Hagiu, 39, faces charges of felony murder in the first degree and murder in the second degree for the two deaths.

In interviews with a witness, who was in the parking lot at the time of the confrontation, Hagiu, Feistner and an unidentified male had allegedly arrived to pick up the witness, according to court documents.

When the witness said he left his keys in his hotel room, they went up to retrieve them. Police found that surveillance footage shows Hagiu carrying a baseball bat behind his back to the door.

Another victim was sleeping when the three knocked. In an interview, the victim said he attempted to close the door when they asked for keys and he did not recognize them, but they forced their way in, records said.

As Hagiu began hitting the second victim with a bat, Al Izawi came out of the bathroom and fired his weapon at the intruders, records said. The gunshot hit Feistner, and he fell to the floor, the victim told police.

After Al Izawi’s gun ran out of ammunition, Hagiu began hitting Al Izawi “in the head, several times, with the baseball bat and at one time, stomping on his head with his foot,” records said.

Hagiu took the handgun and left the room. Another unidentified witness indicated to police that Hagiu confessed to them that Feistner had been shot and he had assaulted Al Izawi “to the point where he would be dazed for a week,” according to court documents.

In an interview with police, Hagiu said the second victim invited them in to the room and that Al Izawi began shooting at them, so he beat Al Izawi. He also said the second victim came at him with a knife, resulting in a struggle. He said he left the room after the confrontation to have the original witness call 911. He admitted to re-entering the room twice because “he did not want to leave Feistner behind,” according to court documents.

Hagiu also admitted he took the gun and sold it the next day for $100. Because he left the scene before medical personnel arrived and did not call 911, police said his story was inconsistent with witness and surveillance footage recounts.

Police suspect Hagiu of second-degree murder for the death of Al Izawi. Because of his suspected involvement with a felony that resulted in the death of Feistner, he also faces possible charges of felony first-degree murder, first-degree burglary and aggravated assault.