MEDIA RELEASE: FELON WHO SOLD FIREARM TO SCHOOL SHOOTER ARRESTED IN ARIZONA
January 14, 2025
On December 4, 2024, at 1:09 p.m. the Butte County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call about a school shooting at the Seventh Day Adventist School on Cox Lane, Oroville. Law enforcement arrived at the school at 1:10 p.m.
During the subsequent investigation, Butte County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) personnel determined Glenn Litton, age 56, used a handgun to critically wound two kindergarten students, ages five and six. As law enforcement was arriving at the school, Litton used the handgun to kill himself. Litton was a convicted felon with an extensive criminal history, and as a result it was illegal for him to possess a firearm.
The handgun Litton used in the shooting was a Glock 19 “ghost gun.” “Ghost gun” receivers lack serial numbers, and can be assembled by individuals using gun parts from different firearms. BCSO detectives, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), analyzed the parts on the handgun and located evidence the handgun was previously owned by an individual who resided in Buckeye, Arizona. Detectives also located evidence Litton was in Phoenix, Arizona in April of 2024.
In December of 2024, BCSO detectives traveled to Arizona. Detectives located evidence Steven Lyons, age 77, of Buckeye Arizona purchased the handgun Litton used during the school shooting in April of 2024. Lyons purchased the handgun from the widow of the original owner of the firearm, after he passed away. The original owner purchased the firearm lawfully and the subsequent sale to Lyons was lawful under Arizona state law.
After writing numerous search warrants and conducting an extensive investigation, detectives located evidence Lyons resold the firearm to Jesse Kitagawa Jr., age 45, of Phoenix, Arizona, on April 8, 2024. Kitagawa is a convicted felon, so it was unlawful for him to purchase and possess the firearm from Lyons. However, it appears that Lyons did not violate Arizona state law when he sold the firearm to Kitagawa, because Kitagawa has a driver’s license issued by the state of Arizona and assured Lyons that he could lawfully possess firearms.
Detectives determined that Kitagawa then sold the firearm to Litton on April 10, 2024 in violation of Arizona state law. On January 9, 2025, BCSO and Phoenix Police Department detectives served a search warrant at Kitagawa’s residence, which is located in, Phoenix, Arizona. Detectives determined that Litton practiced with the firearm at a gun range located in Phoenix, Arizona where he also purchased ammunition consistent with the ammunition used during the shooting at the Seventh Day Adventist School on December 4, 2024. Litton returned to California on a Greyhound bus on April 19, 2024.
During the service of the search warrant and subsequent investigation, detectives located evidence confirming Kitagawa purchased the handgun from Lyons. Detectives located additional evidence that Kitagawa met Litton at a motel in Chandler, Arizona in April of 2024, and sold the handgun to Litton for $300.
Since Kitagawa is a convicted felon, and detectives located evidence he possessed and sold a handgun to Litton, Kitagawa was placed under arrest by Phoenix Police Department detectives for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Kitagawa’s initial court hearing was on January 10, 2025 where a local judge found there was probable cause and issued a bond for Kitagawa. Kitagawa is currently awaiting his next court date where charges are expected to be filed by Maricopa County District Attorney’s Office. Kitagawa’s next court date has not been set at this time.
Sheriff Kory Honea said, “I want to thank the FBI for the assistance they provided to BCSO detectives by identifying the original owner of the firearm and the fact that it was sold in Arizona. I would also like to thank the Phoenix Police Department for their willingness to partner with BCSO in this investigation and for arresting Kitagawa for the crime he committed in their jurisdiction. Finally, I want express my sincere gratitude to the members of my office who spent many hours doggedly pursuing leads that led to the identification of Kitagawa as the person who supplied Litton the firearm he used to carry out his evil plan. BCSO was committed to tracking down anyone who unlawfully assisted Litton and the arrest of Kitagawa fulfills that commitment.”
