The city of Gilbert, Arizona, is one of the top ten places in the US to raise children.
The small town, essentially an affluent suburb of Phoenix, has a population of 290,000 and nearly a third of the population is under the age of 18.
An investigation by Wallet Hub ranked Gilbert as the 6th best place in the country to start a family in 2024.
The site surveyed more than 180 cities across the country using 45 key metrics considered important for raising a family, including housing costs, health care, school quality and recreational activities.
But the city has a dark secret: a young gang runs rampant through the area.
The town of Gilbert, Arizona is one of the top ten places in the US to raise children
A street gang called the ‘Gilbert Goons’ has plagued the Phoenix suburbs, attacking teenagers and robbing stores
Once heralded as the second safest city in the country, Gilbert has been in the national news for all the wrong reasons with teenage delinquents terrorizing the community since 2022.
The Gilbert Goons are known for taking on blitz-style attacks in parks, parking garages, outside fast food restaurants, and at house parties.
After carrying out the attacks on unsuspecting people, they then post the videos on social media.
Victims and residents in the area describe the group as mostly white, upper-middle-class teens from several East Valley high schools.
Their attacks seemed unmotivated and were often recorded and shared by the attackers themselves.
Several lawsuits have been filed alleging that law enforcement and school officials have allowed the Goons to continue unleashing their violence since at least 2022.
The small town, essentially an affluent suburb of Phoenix, is home to 290,000 residents and nearly a third of the population is under the age of 18.
After a months-long investigation into the group, Gilbert Police Chief Michael Soelberg confirmed last month that the group is operating as an organized criminal entity.
The Goons’ reign of terror: DailyMail.com can reveal how the gang of youths ran amok in the Arizona town before the death of Preston Lord in October
The teens’ violence, which reportedly included armed robberies and dozens of attacks at parties and in parking lots, culminated in the fatal beating of Preston Lord, 16
Last month, the group of young men who terrorized the Phoenix suburbs were finally designated as a criminal street gang.
The teens’ violence, which reportedly included armed robberies and dozens of attacks at parties and parking lots — some involving brass knuckles — culminated last year in the fatal beating of 16-year-old Preston Lord at a Halloween party.
After months of investigating the gang, Embattled Gilbert Police Chief Michael Soelberg confirmed the group functions as an organized criminal entity.
The city’s police chief explained that the Goons were classified as a ‘hybrid gang’ due to their reliance on social media, its members not being of the same race and having a ‘lax or absent’ code of conduct.
Police say the Goons lack aspects of a traditional gang, including defined leadership and rules, specific use of symbols and colors, and lifelong commitments.
Goons suspects Treston Billie and Jacob Meisner are named in Kuehner’s lawsuit after several arrests for assault in Gilbert. They are both also charged with Lord’s murder
Gilbert is ranked sixth in the country to start a family by 2024, according to a study by Wallethub
Sarah Williams, right, and April Gould teach an online goat yoga class in Gilbert
The Goons have been involved in at least 95 attacks in 18 attacks, most of them in Gilbert, as reported by the Republic of Arizona.
Police Chief Michael Soelberg previously told DailyMail.com that his department has made 29 arrests in connection with attacks.
Despite national news about teen violence in Gilbert, Chief Soelberg denied in May that teen violence was particularly bad in the area.
He said: “Overall Gilbert is a safe community, but we are not immune to the problems we have seen across the country so we are no different to anyone else.
“We are a large community of almost 300,000 people, and within our community we have 80,000 teens and younger. And so when you have that many kids, you’re bound to have conflict between teenagers, and that’s what we’re seeing nationally.”
But more videos of teenage attacks and claims from alleged victims about the Goon’s reign of terror were shared with police after Lord’s fatal assault during an October Halloween party in nearby Queen Creek.
Seven teenagers and young men, including several Goons suspects, have been charged with his murder, prompting accusations from some in the community who believe the alleged killers should have been removed from the streets long ago.