TUCSON, Ariz. (TCN) — A man who is already serving 16 life sentences and held two guards hostage allegedly killed three other inmates last week.
According to a news release from the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (ADCRR), on Friday, April 4, an “altercation” led to the death of three inmates: Saul Alvarez, Thorne Harnage, and Donald Lashley. Authorities announced that the ADCRR canceled visitations for the rest of the day.
Upon further investigation, officials identified Ricky Wassenaar as the primary suspect and said preliminary reports suggest that he “acted with intent to harm” the victims. The ADCRR did not disclose how the three inmates died.
According to KOLD-TV, Wassenaar is already serving time for his role in a prison standoff. In 2005, he was convicted on 19 charges, including kidnapping, dangerous or deadly assault by prisoner, aggravated assault, sexual assault, and first-degree escape. In 2004, Wassenaar and Steven Coy reportedly abducted two guards, a man and woman, and held them hostage for 15 days at the Arizona State Prison Lewis Complex in Buckeye. One of the guards alleged that she was raped multiple times.
Wassenaar allegedly used a handmade weapon to get a kitchen guard’s uniform from an officer. He then used the uniform to get into a prison watchtower before the standoff ensued, KOLD reports. It was reportedly one of the longest prison hostage situations in the nation.
Before the standoff, Wassenaar was serving a sentence for armed robbery and assault.
The ADCRR said Alvarez was housed at the Arizona State Prison Complex in Tucson since 2004 after being sentenced for first-degree murder out of Maricopa County. Harnage was in custody since 2024 after being sentenced for sexual conduct with a minor, while Lashley was admitted in 2023 for sexual conduct with a minor and molestation of a child.
