Chandler Police make murder arrest near Hunt/Cooper

The Chandler Police Department says it's investigating a Monday afternoon homicidein a residential neighborhood and has a suspect in custody.

Monday, at about 4:45 p.m., Chandler Police officers responded to a shooting in the 2200 block of East Hazeltine Way, according to a news release.

A female victim called 911 to report her husband had been shot by someone at that location, police said. Upon arrival, police found a 58-year-old man dead and having suffered multiple gunshot wounds.

The victim was later identified as Matthew Miller. 

The man was in his vehicle with his wife and had stopped to check their mail when confronted by a man who opened fire on them.

Miller's wife was a passenger in the vehicle and was not injured. She was able to call 911 and, upon police arrival, identified the shooter, who was still at the scene and behaving as a bystander.

Police arrested the man without incident. He was identified as Channing J. Vanderbilt, 31, living near where this shooting took place.

Vanderbilt was booked in Maricopa County Jail and charged with: first degree murder, aggravated assault, endangerment, discharging a firearm at a non-residence and discharging a firearm at a residence.

 Chandler Police said it appears Vanderbilt acted alone.

"There is no threat to the community," police said. 

Chandler Police had responded to a nearby area that Monday morning  after a resident reported someone had shot at his cinderblock wall near the 2400 block of East Gleneagle Drive. There were no witnesses to this crime, and initially, no evidence was located.

Additional investigation is being conducted to determine if the wall damage and the shooting were related.  There were no initial indications Vanderbilt and Miller knew each other prior to the shooting, even as neighbors.

East Hazeltine Way runs east and west between Cooper and Gilbert roads, just north of Hunt Highway.  The Sun River development is in this area.

Police said in the initial call for help, Miller's wife said a black man was running to the east as police were arriving. Police arrived and saw a man matching the descrition she gave, arresting him on-site.

Miller's wife told police that as the couple was leaving a a shared driveway area, Vanderbilt went up to the passanger side of a Dodge Ram truck, parked on the street, where he retreived a rifle and began shooting at them as they stopped infront of the mailboxes. She said the husband pushed his wife's head down, telling her to get down as their vehicle was being shot at numerous times and it rolled forward.

The vehicle and gunfire both came to a stop and the victim saw her husband had been shot numerous times and was motionless in the driver seat. She  then called 911 and described the suspect.

Miller was pronounced dead in the vehicle. 

Police said an investigation turned up a black rifle that was located in the front cab of the Dodge Ram truck. Vanderbilt had keys to the truck on him when he was arrested.

Additional casings were found in the victims' vehicle and in the area around the truck in two separate areas, indicating Vanderbilt moved positions as he shot at the victims and their vehicle, police said. When searched, Vanderbilt had three casings in his pocket which were consitent with the casing found in the roadway and could have been fired from the rifle located in the vehicle.

Police said Miller had numerous injuries consitent with gunshot wounds, and the couple's vehicle had damage consistent with gunshots. A nearby residence on the north side of East Hazeltine Drive was found to have gunshot damage as well.

Vanderbilt received medical attention, though there was no mention of serious injuries.  He told police he feels like he "has been targeted in various ways over the last several years."

Vanderbilt told police said he had been in the residence with his mother when he heard gunshots and ran outside. when he went outside, he saw the victims' vehicle in the roadway. He ran toward the truck and asked the female inside if she was OK. He said the wife he told him she had been shot and was calling 911.

Vanderbilt said he picked up casings as “souvenirs” but denied being involved in the shooting. He told police he did not own any guns and believed someone placed it in his vehicle without his knowledge.

Police said Vanderbilt made inconsistent statements during the interview.

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