PHOENIX — Some of the so-called Gilbert Goons were set to be back in court Thursday. Two of the teen defendants were scheduled to stand before a judge.
18-year-old Christopher Fantastic is accused of assault and robbery in August 2023 outside of an In-N-Out in Gilbert. He was indicted in January 2024 on charges of aggravated robbery and aggravated assault, according to Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell. Fantastic is accused of punching another teen while the victim was on the ground.
RELATED: Teen indicted on aggravated assault charges for violent attack at Gilbert fast food restaurant
18-year-old Aris Arredondo was also indicted on aggravated robbery and assault charges in January for the same assault, according to Mitchell.
The victim's father previously told 12News that his son was taken to the emergency room after the attack and he later decided to send his son overseas to live with his mother due to the dangerous situation.
Thursday's scheduled court appearances follow an announcement earlier this week involving three other defendants connected to Gilbert Goons group violence cases. Jacob Pennington, Deleon Hayes and Garrett Bagshaw entered plea deals for their involvement in the violence. Mitchell said the cases are still being taken seriously even though plea deals were offered.
“I think people hear that and they think people are not going to be held accountable, and that's simply not true," Mitchell said. "Plea deals can be very beneficial in terms of, and I'm speaking generically, I'm not talking about any particular case, where you have multiple defendants and you have one defendant in order to plead guilty, admits guilt and describes what happened. That can be helpful in obtaining convictions against other people.”
None of these defendants are charged in connection with the Preston Lord death in Queen Creek.
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