Arizona AG seeks death warrant for inmate in 2002 gasoline attack

Leroy McGill: Arizona seeks March 2026 execution

The state is seeking a March 2026 execution date for Leroy McGill, the death row inmate convicted in a 2002 gasoline attack in north Phoenix that killed Charles Perez and injured Nova Banta.

PHOENIX - The Arizona Attorney General’s Office has begun the process to obtain a death warrant for Leroy McGill, the death row inmate convicted in a deadly 2002 gasoline attack.

Prosecutors are seeking a March 2026 execution for McGill, who was sentenced to death for the murder of Charles Perez and the attempted murder of Nova Banta.

Leroy McGill

The backstory:

According to court records, McGill entered a north Phoenix apartment and doused both victims with gasoline before setting them on fire.

Investigators said McGill bragged about mixing the gasoline with Styrofoam to create a napalm-like substance that would stick to the victims and burn hotter.

Perez died from his injuries, while Banta survived after being placed in a medically induced coma.

"The victim was burned over 80% of his body, screamed in pain, and ultimately died. Setting a conscious person on fire necessarily causes the victim tremendous suffering which was enhanced by the napalm-like mixture which stuck to the victims and made it difficult rescuers to put out," Arizona Court's website says.

Dig deeper:

"State law requires the State to inflict McGill’s death sentence by lethal injection. A.R.S. § 13–757(A); Ariz. Const. Art. 22 § 22. ADCRR will carry out McGill’s lethal injection using compounded pentobarbital, as it used three times in 2022 and twice earlier this year. Once compounded, ADCRR anticipates that the drug will have a beyond-use date of 90 days from the date of compounding," a Dec. 12 court document read.