Arizona Woman Arrested for Murder, Fatal Shooting Charges After Police Search

An Arizona woman identified as Kathryn "Katie" Hansen has been arrested after months of evading capture since she murdered 32-year-old Keith Emmons in February.

Aside from the murder charges in February, Hansen has also been connected to another fatal shooting in January, according to Fox News.

Witnesses identified Hansen as the suspect in the murder, with a warrant issued for her arrest for first-degree murder.

The Mesa, Arizona police department announced the arrest of the 27-year-old suspect. Meanwhile, the Phoenix Police Department notified the Mesa Police Department on Friday that they had a lead and had knowledge of Hansen's possible location.

The Mesa Police Department thanked the community for its assistance in a Facebook post. The law enforcement agency noted that the tips they received allowed detectives to follow up on leads that they believe ultimately led to Hansen's arrest.

Meanwhile, Phoenix police said that Hansen has additional charges against her, with the fatal shooting in January connected to her.

Arizona Woman Murder Charges

Officers responded to a house due to reports of a shooting. The location was near South Palo Verde Street and East Southern Avenue.

AZ Central reported that upon the arrival of the police, they found Emmons dead inside a bedroom with gunshot wounds.

Mesa police spokesperson Det. Brandi George said in a statement in February that Hansen is five foot, three inches, with hazel eyes and brown hair.

In addition, she has a tattoo above her right eyebrow which reads, "Stay True."

Meanwhile, the fatal shooting charges against Hansen involve 41-year-old Aaron Byous, who was shot at a home near 16th Street and Union Hills Drive.

It was not immediately clear how detectives established Hansen's connection to the case.

In addition, it has not been publicly established what Hansen's relationship with Emmons was and the details surrounding the alleged murder.

Arizona Murder Rates

In March, the Department of Justice released a report showing that Arizona is among the three states that have surpassed the national average of violent crime rates.

The other states were Colorado and Washington, with each state having violent victimization rates higher than the national rate of 31.6 per 1,000 people.

AZ Family noted that Arizona also committed higher property crime rates as compared to the national rate, between 28% and 44%.

Neighborhood Scout, a crime mapping online resource, noted that only four percent of U.S. cities are less safe than Phoenix.

In August 2022, it was reported that Arizona's homicide rates increased over the last decade.

The historic jump in murders also came with the COVID-19 pandemic, the skyrocketing unemployment, gun sales, and the murder of George Floyd, which raised skepticism when it comes to confidence in law enforcement, as cited by Patch.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation data showed that the number of murders in Arizona was 515 in 2020 as compared to 397 in 2011. It marks a 29.2% increase in ranks.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Woman on the run after Mesa Police say she shot and killed a man: What to know - from FOX 10 Phoenix