Trooper and pilot mourned after being killed in an Arizona law enforcement helicopter crash

Arizona law enforcement officers mourned a veteran U.S. Marine pilot and a trooper paramedic Friday while the cause of a helicopter crash that killed them during a police shootout with a domestic violence suspect in Flagstaff remained under investigation.

Police alleged the suspect, identified Friday as Terrell Storey, 50, fired on officers from multiple rooftops in Flagstaff over almost two hours Wednesday night. He was captured at about the same time as the helicopter crash and remained hospitalized Friday with non-life-threatening gunshot wounds.

Storey faces charges including two counts of first-degree murder and 10 counts of aggravated assault on law enforcement. He was being held on $5 million cash-only bond and was to be booked into jail after being released from the hospital, according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety.

The case has not yet appeared in the state online court records system and it was not clear whether Storey had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.

The helicopter crew had been playing a common role, helping officers on the ground, Arizona Department of Public Safety Director Col. Jeffrey Glover said.

“They have the ability of getting eyes and ears up top,” he said. “They have a very important role when they are running their missions.”

What caused the helicopter to crash was “under active investigation” by agencies including the National Transportation Safety Board, Glover said.

No one on the helicopter had opened fire, Glover said. The Bell 407 helicopter was “functioning just fine” when it was most recently inspected on Jan. 29, Glover said.

Glover declined to say more about possible causes, such as whether gunfire or a drone may have struck it.

“It would be just really irresponsible for us to speculate at this time. We have to allow for NTSB to conduct their investigation to figure out exactly what has occurred,” Glover said.

Trooper Hunter Bennett, 28, and pilot Robert Skankey, 61, were killed.

The confrontation began when officers responded to a domestic violence call, Flagstaff Police Chief Sean Connolly said Thursday.

As the officers spoke with the victim in the front yard, the suspect shot at them from the back of the residence with a semiautomatic rifle.

A protracted gunbattle ensued, with the unidentified suspect “hopping from roof to roof” in the neighborhood while shooting at officers. The police chief described the neighborhood as “under siege” while the suspect shot at officers and into homes.

The suspect was taken to a hospital with nonfatal gunshot wounds.

Connolly indicated three Flagstaff police officers and one Department of Public Safety employee fired their weapons during the confrontation.

Skankey was a longtime resident of Kingman, Arizona, city officials said in a statement. He had been hired by the Arizona Department of Public Safety in May 2021 and previously served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He was married and had four children, Glover said.

Bennett was an honors graduate of Arizona State University and the top graduate of his 2023 Arizona Law Enforcement Academy class. He transferred to an air rescue unit in 2024 and months later married his high school sweetheart, officials said.

Aviation safety consultant Jeff Guzzetti, who used to investigate crashes for the NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration, said the flight data suggested a possible a mechanical problem or pilot disorientation but that it was too soon to know for certain.

The NTSB has investigated 26 fatal accidents involving Bell 407 helicopters over the past 20 years. Three involved mechanical problems.

“I’m not aware of any bad reputation for this helicopter,” Guzzetti said.

Before crashing, the helicopter was making a pass back to the shootout scene when it slowed to almost a hover about 1,000 feet (300 meters) over a hilltop, Guzzetti noted from public flight-path data.

The last moments of flight after crossing over an unpopulated area didn’t seem consistent with being hit by a drone or gunfire, Guzzetti said. If that were so, he said, the pilot likely would have been able to radio that information in and attempt to land somewhere.

“Everything up until the last minute of flight seemed normal in terms of the altitude and airspeed. After it made that turn is when things become curious to me,” Guzzetti said.

The spelling of the pilot’s last name has been corrected from Skanky to Skankey, based on new information from authorities.

This photo combo shows from left, trooper Hunter R. Bennett and pilot Robert Bruce Skankey,. (Arizona Department Of Public Safety via AP)

In this grab taken from video, emergency cervices work at a scene of Police Helicopter Crash in Flagstaff, Arizona, the night from Feb. 4 to 5, 2026. (ABC15 Arizona via AP)

Law enforcement respond to aneighborhood in Flagstaff, Ariz. ,where police say a man opened fire on officers on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Cheyanne Mumphrey)

The blocked road to a neighborhood in Flagstaff, Arizona, where police say a man opened fire at officers is seen Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Cheyanne Mumphrey)

Thousands of Catholic devotees commemorated Good Friday across Latin America with processions and ceremonies re-enacting the crucifixion of Jesus.

In Antigua, a colonial-era city in southern Guatemala, dozens dressed in purple and white robes and made their way under the early morning sun, many of them penitents known as “cucuruchos.” Others carried centuries-old images of Jesus through cobblestone streets.

The city hosts more than a dozen processions throughout Holy Week, set against a backdrop of volcanoes.

Marcos Bautista, 63, said he has attended the Good Friday observances since his father brought him along as a baby in his arms.

“To describe Holy Week in Antigua, there are no words that can capture what it feels like," Bautista said. “It’s a feeling that, just by speaking about what Jesus has done in our lives, moves me deeply.”

In Bolivia, President Rodrigo Paz traveled to the southern city of Tarija to participate in Good Friday ceremonies.

The country is a secular state under its constitution and its leaders refrained from engaging in any religious events between 2006 and 2025. But Paz — who took office last November — broke with precedent by attending Palm Sunday Mass carrying a palm frond.

In the capital city of La Paz, government authorities and military bands accompanied Good Friday processions, in which hooded penitents carried the Holy Sepulcher through the streets.

Bolivia remains a predominantly Catholic country, alongside strong Indigenous spiritual traditions. In some households, it is customary to eat only fish on Good Friday and prepare up to 12 dishes representing the apostles of Jesus, a tradition that has declined in recent years amid an economic crisis.

In Ecuador, where about 80% of the population identifies as Catholic, processions were held across major cities.

In Guayaquil, roughly half a million faithful attended the “Cristo del Consuelo” procession. Amid displays of devotion, some participants walked barefoot, while others wore thorn crowns or dragged crosses.

In the capital, Quito, the “Jesús del Gran Poder” procession drew more than 150,000 faithful, who filled the historic center’s streets with chants and prayers as they accompanied an image of Jesus carrying the cross.

Thousands more climbed the Monserrate Hill in neighboring Colombia. At more than 10,200 feet (3,100 meters) above sea level, they reached the summit in the capital city of Bogotá to attend Mass at the basilica. Similar observances, including reenactments of the Stations of the Cross, were held in other parts of the country, including Medellín.

While the share of Catholics in Latin America has declined over the past decade, the faith remains the region’s largest religion.

In several countries, including Mexico, Peru and Argentina, more than 60% of adults still identify as Catholic, according to 2024 surveys by the Pew Research Center and Latinobarómetro.

AP journalists Moisés Castillo in Antigua, Guatemala; Carlos Valdez in La Paz, Bolivia; Gonzalo Solano and Gabriela Molina, in Quito, Ecuador, contributed to this report.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Penitents from the Nazareno brotherhood carry a statue of Jesus down the steps of the Cathedral Basilica of St. James the Apostle for a Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Tunja, Colombia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

A hooded penitent from the Nazareno brotherhood waits for the Good Friday procession inside the Cathedral Basilica of St. James the Apostle during Holy Week in Tunja, Colombia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Young women and girls carry jeweled hearts representing the Virgin Mary at a Good Friday procession during Holy Week in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

Hooded penitents participate in a Good Friday procession during Holy Week in La Paz, Bolivia, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

A statue of Jesus Christ with a cross makes its way past electric cables at La Merced church's Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Women carry children dressed as penitents knows as "cucuruchos" on the sidelines of La Merced church's Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Penitents carry statues of Jesus Christ representing the Stations of the Cross at a Good Friday procession by La Merced church during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, just before sunrise Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Musicians dressed as Roman soldiers take part in La Merced church's Good Friday procession during Holy Week in Antigua, Guatemala, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)