ANTHEM, AZ (CBS5/AP) -
Authorities said they believe the same gunman is responsible for the Arizona deaths of a sheriff's deputy and a New Hampshire couple found dead in their car.
"We have two murders within days of each other - within relatively close proximity to one another and both involving a high powered rifle," Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said at a news conference Tuesday. "We believed from the outset, these killings were somehow likely connected."
Arpaio said 50-year-old William Coleman of New River died after exchanging gunfire with the burglary suspect outside Angel Pediatrics.
The suspect in both slayings is 30-year-old Drew Ryan Maras, who was killed by deputies during the gunfire exchange.
The sheriff's office confirmed with CBS 5 that Maras was from Peoria, where he was employed as a seasonal maintenance worker from March 2011 to November 2011. Maras' family told authorities they believe he had recently been living out of his van.
Arpaio said Coleman was shot by Maras, who reportedly emerged from a minivan shooting when deputies arrived on scene at a medical plaza near Gavilan Peak Parkway and Anthem Way at about 4:10 a.m.
"Our deputies approached the van, and the suspect came out shooting with an automatic rifle," Arpaio said. "He killed our deputy. Two of our officers returned fire and killed the suspect."
The area was placed on lockdown immediately after the incident, Arpaio said. It's not known what was stolen, if anything, from the business, MCSO said.
Coleman is the first Maricopa County sheriff's deputy slain in the line of duty since 1995.
"This is a day of sadness for the Arizona law enforcement community, as we mourn the loss of Maricopa County Deputy Sheriff William H. Coleman," Gov. Jan Brewer said in a statement Sunday afternoon.
Coleman had served at the MCSO for almost 20 years. Coleman was assigned to our District 4 area which covers Anthem, New River, Carefree, Cave Creek and North Phoenix county areas.
He is survived by a wife and two young children. Two older children live out of state.
The 100 Club of Arizona said it is providing Coleman's family with a $15,000 line-of-duty death benefit check.
Coleman will be honored with a tribute to his family at the 100 Club of Arizona's 44th Annual Banquet and Meeting on March 15 at Chaparral Suites, Executive Director Sharon Knutson-Felix said.
Other groups are stepping forward as well. To help the family, friends and fellow officers deal with the grief, Deputies Law Enforcement Association will hold a Community Benefit BBQ Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the PLEA Office, 1102 W. Adams. Donations may also be made to the Deputy Coleman Memorial Fund at Desert Schools Federal Credit Union, account number 6000123586.
On Friday morning, members of a Jeep club found James Johnson, of Jaffrey, NH, and Carol Raynsford of Nelson, NH, in their red, older model Subaru sedan at a remote turnout on Arizona 89A near the scenic resort town of Sedona. Someone shot them with a .223-caliber rifle while they were parked on a highway turnout.
Yavapai County Sheriff's Spokesman Dwight D'Evelyn said detectives found numerous casings from the rifle on both sides of the car.
"It doesn't appear it was provoked in any way, that's what makes it so unusual and baffling for our detectives," he said.
D'Evelyn said Johnson and Raynsford were vacationing in the area.
Deputies aren't sure when Johnson and Raynsford were killed, D'Evelyn said. Some callers reported seeing the car parked at the turnout on Thursday, and detectives are using receipts and other items found inside the vehicle to try to trace their steps and establish a timeline. If you saw the suspect's vehicle, a 1998 Toyota Sienna mini-van with Illinois license plates, around the time of the homicides on Jan. 5 and 6, you're asked to call authorities.
The Yavapai County Sheriff told CBS 5 his department is looking into the possibility that others were involved in the shootings, but have found no evidence of it.
Sheriff Arpaio said ballistic experts from his office confirmed that the cartridges taken from both crime scenes are a match.
Stay with KPHO.com and CBS 5 for more on this developing story.
Copyright 2012 KPHO. All rights reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Drew Ryan Maras / Courtesy: Facebook
Suspects vehicle: 1998 Toyota Sienna mini-van, color similar to Champaign, with Illinois license plates. If you've seen this vehicle in the Sedona area around the time of the homicides -- Jan. 5 & 6 -- you're asked to call authorities
MCSO Deputy William Coleman
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