Two county deputies shot, along with suspect

December 17, 2004

Two Maricopa County sheriff's deputies were shot Thursday during the serving of a search warrant in east Mesa. A suspect was shot by a third deputy.

Deputy Sean Pearce, who is the son of Rep. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, was shot in the abdomen. He was flown to Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix, where he underwent surgery to remove part of his large intestine. Deputy Lew Argetsinger was shot in the hand and taken by ambulance to the medical center. Both were stable.

The suspect, Jorge Luis Guerra Vargas, 22, was flown to Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center in Phoenix with nonlife-threatening facial injuries.

According to authorities, detectives with the Pinal County Sheriff's Office wanted to execute a search warrant at the mobile home of a homicide’s investigative lead, but asked Maricopa County SWAT team members to enter first to ensure their safety.

Lt. Dave Trombi said seven members of the team knocked on the door at 111 S. 91st Way at 6:35 a.m., announced their presence in English and Spanish, then broke through the door. They were a short distance inside when a subject opened fire.

Both deputies shot were wearing ballistic body armor, but Pearce was struck in an unprotected spot, Trombi said.

A third deputy returned fire on GuerraVargas, who was alone in the home, Trombi said.

Pinal County Sheriff's Office spokesman Mike Minter said detectives had hoped to obtain evidence pertaining to a recent homicide in Hewlitt Station, a community near Queen Valley.

A hunter called deputies Dec. 5 after he found a body with a gunshot wound to the head buried under a pile of scrap lumber, Minter said.

Investigators found fresh tire tracks on the scene, and the clue led authorities to the mobile home.

Esteban Soto, the investigative lead in the case, was found Thursday in New Mexico and is being detained for questioning there.

Deputies are still working to identify the body, which is described as a 20- to 25-year-old Hispanic male.

Pearce has been on the force for 11 years, Deputy Argetsinger for three years.

Rep. Pearce, said he was in Washington, D.C., testifying on an immigration panel when he was told his son had been shot.

"He is feisty. He will do well," he said. "I guarantee that the moment he is allowed back, he will put that uniform on and be out there doing police work."

Russell Pearce also was shot in the chest and hand in the line of duty about 20 years ago while chasing gang members in Guadalupe.

Efforts to contact Argetsinger's family were unsuccessful.