SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Multiple people have been arrested in connection with a deadly assault in Old Town Scottsdale earlier this month.
Around 2 a.m. on October 11, officers responded to Pattie’s First Ave Lounge near Scottsdale Road and First Avenue, where Thomas John “TJ” Pizzitola was found unconscious on a sidewalk.
"He wasn't answering his phone. His location kept changing to weird places. I saw he was at the hospital," Krisan Pizzitola, TJ's wife said.
That's how she discovered what happened to her husband.
Krisan called T.J.'s mother Gina, who raced to be by her son's side at the hospital.
"You just see your child laying there helpless and it's a shock right and like what is happening right now?" Gina said.
Doctors soon shared the grim prognosis - T.J. was brain dead. The 29-year-old project manager who loved to dress up as Santa for younger family members at Christmas and had been so excited to be a dad was gone.
Investigators learned from people at the scene that there was an argument between multiple people, which turned into a physical assault.
Police say Pizzitola was hit in the head and fell to the ground, and the other people involved left the scene.
The police department had put out a call for the community to reach out with tips that could lead to solving the case.
Scottsdale police have since reported that 24-year-old Drew Meneses, 27-year-old Julius Husser, 26-year-old Tony Becker, 23-year-old Mark Whitford, and 27-year-old Krista Molina were taken into custody on Wednesday.
Meneses was booked into jail on charges of second-degree murder charge and aggravated assault.
According to police documents, three people were in a group that was asked to leave Patti's due to unruly behavior.
The trio was under an awning to avoid the rain while waiting for a ride when one of the men bumped into a woman in another group and apologized, police say.
The woman and four men with her then reportedly engaged the trio in an argument.
Police say the trio started to walk away to get to their ride, and they were followed by the larger group. One of the men, identified by police as Meneses, “blindsided and punched” Pizzitola, knocking him unconscious.
Police say the group then started attacking the people who were with Pizzitola.
Cell phone video reportedly captured some of the incident, according to officials.
The investigation is ongoing.
His family was determined to make sure T.J.'s light would shine on in others. Just a week earlier, he had renewed his decision to be an organ donor.
"He was the type of guy who didn't even have to tell you that he loved you. You could feel it, you could see it. He's literally the best man I've ever met in my entire life," Krisan said.
By honoring T.J.'s wishes, his family says five other lives were saved. As it turns out, T.J. wasn't just special to his wife and mother - his blood type was also special. So rare, it made him the only hope for two people given just 24 hours to live if a transplant didn't become available.
"We always say, we feel everyone should have a heart like TJ, and if there's one part of TJ that stays here, I love that it's his heart. He had the biggest heart," his family said.
The family has set up a GoFundMe to help his widow and their baby, which you can find by clicking here.
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