SCOTTSDALE — A newly promoted General Manger of the Red Robin near Pima Road and Talking Stick Way was found murdered inside the restaurant last Sunday morning. Police are still looking for his killer.
Those close to him say he was a regular at Santisi Brothers near I-17 and Bell Road.
”Every time he walked through that door, I automatically always had his drink for him,” said Shannon Johannsen, pouring a diet coke and Jack.
Johannsen has her regulars but she says there weren’t many like Joseph Doyle.
Friends called him Joe.
“He would be the loudest person at this bar, and this place gets loud when football is on.
Long before Johannsen worked at Santisi Brothers, she met Joe in a game at the poker table.
A game he loved almost as much as he loved his Steelers. If he was watching Quarterback ‘Big Ben’ or betting the big blind — he left a big impression on all those he knew.
“A lot of energy, and super kind. Just the kindest person you’d ever meet,” she said.
Johannsen said one of her last interactions with Doyle, he shared he was just promoted as the GM of the Red Robin at Pima Road and Talking Stick Way. And after months of pandemic-related isolation, he was finally able to enjoy poker with friends while watching his Steelers.
”He just seemed like so happy,” she said.
Last Sunday June 12, just after 9:15 in the morning, Salt River police were called to the Red Robin.
An employee reported a broken door.
As officers were conducting a sweep inside, they discovered Joe had been murdered. Investigators believe he was killed during a robbery.
”I was in shock,” she said.
Those in food service know the dangers of opening and closing a restaurant. Sometimes managers or servers could be some of the only people on site.
”It can happen to anybody and it’s super scary and the fact that it happened to such a beautiful person,” said Johannsen.
Whoever murdered Doyle that Sunday morning has yet to be even identified by police.
Anyone who may have seen anything around the restaurant that Sunday morning, June 12 between 6:00AM and 9:30 AM to call Salt River Police at 480-850-9230.
