OHM Fitness severs ties with Gilbert gym owner over connections to Preston Lord case

A Gilbert fitness center owner was stripped of her franchise rights over her family's alleged involvement in the death of 16-year-old Preston Lord.

OHM Fitness on Friday cut ties with Becky Renner and took control of her business, CEO Doug Payne said in an email to gym members.

"Based on the Renner family’s alleged involvement in the incident leading to the tragic death of Preston Lord in October 2023, we have severed ties with Becky Renner and have assumed operations of her OHM Fitness studio located in Gilbert at Cooley Station," Payne said in the email.

"We stand with the Gilbert community and pray for peace and swift justice for Preston Lord and the Lord family," Payne said.

Renner did not respond to interview requests by phone and text.

Renner's OHM franchise and other businesses were targeted in communitywide calls for boycotts after the fatal beating of Lord at an Oct. 28 Halloween party in Queen Creek.

Activists took to social media, including Reddit and Facebook, encouraging residents to stay away from Renner's businesses as part of a campaign demanding justice for Lord. Others posted negative reviews on business sites.

Parents, students and community members have publicly accused one of Renner's sons of being involved in the attack on Lord. Renner's home was among those searched by police in November.

Police have not named any suspects in Lord's death, and no one has been charged.

Renner's son is a juvenile. Under most circumstances, The Republic does not name juveniles, even in cases in which they have been convicted of assaults and other crimes.

An OHM representative confirmed Saturday the email was sent to gym members and said in a statement that "effective immediately" Renner's business was under new ownership.

"There have been allegations regarding the family of the OHM Fitness franchisee," the statement said. "OHM Fitness corporate team has taken over the daily operations and management pending the sale to a new franchisee."

Renner opened the OHM Fitness at Cooley Station on Williams Field Road in October. She had worked as the company's brand representative since July 2022. OHM boasts 25-minute workouts using a "hi-tech" power suit.

Renner, who has operated fitness and nutrition businesses in the southeast Valley for years, was profiled with her husband by The Republic in 2014 for their efforts to help drill a well and supply clean drinking water to Bugiri, Uganda.

Payne would not elaborate on his email to gym members, which was sent with the subject line, "New Ownership, Special Loyalty Rate at OHM Fitness Gilbert" and acknowledged cancellations.

"We understand that you have made the decision to cancel your OHM Fitness membership recently, and we would love the opportunity to serve you again under new ownership," Payne said in the email.

Republic investigation details string of attacks

Lord died two days after being beaten and left lying in a street. A Dec. 14 investigation by The Republic detailed potential ties between Lord's death and a string of vicious assaults by a group of mostly affluent teenagers called the "Gilbert Goons," which had gone unchecked for more than a year.

The Goons recorded their blitz-style attacks on teens in parks, public parking garages, outside fast food restaurants and house parties, sharing videos on social media and in private messages. Beatings left teens traumatized and hospitalized.

Gilbert was the nexus for attacks, but others occurred in Mesa and San Tan Valley. After The Republic's account, Gilbert police reopened four inactive investigations. They asked for victims to come forward and opened five new ones.

Chief Michael Soelberg initially said officers never connected the attacks because victims did not specifically mention the gang. Victims since have referred to their attackers as being associated with the Goons.

Police announced the first arrests in cases tied to the Goons on Jan. 10. Nine individuals have since been taken into custody: five by Gilbert police, two by Mesa police, and two by the Pinal County Sheriff's Office. Authorities have said more arrests are coming.

Authorities are considering whether there is evidence to charge the Goons as members of a criminal street gang.

Queen Creek police seek criminal charges against 7 in Lord's death

Queen Creek police, who are investigating Lord's killing, announced on Dec. 28 they are seeking criminal charges against seven "adults and juveniles" in his death and have turned cases over to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office for review.

Renner's house was among those targeted in a dramatic Nov. 6 raid led by Queen Creek police in the wealthy Gilbert enclave of Whitewing, according to neighbors who were blocked from their homes for hours.

Officers descended on the gated community with automatic weapons, an armored vehicle and evidence vans.

Police served multiple warrants and conducted interviews. Renner was photographed by a neighbor sitting on the curb as investigators entered and exited her home carrying evidence bags.

The Republic verified through interviews the addresses where searches took place. The names of boys living in the homes correspond to social media posts connected to members of the Goons.

One of those boys was arrested Jan. 11 by Mesa police in connection with a beating filmed in a Mesa park.

The May 29 assault against another minor in a park near Val Vista Drive and Pueblo Avenue was not reported until Jan. 4, police said. The teenager was booked into the Maricopa County Juvenile Detention Center and accused of aggravated assault. A judge ruled he should be held without bail.

The 17-year-old appears in two separate videos of gang assaults reviewed by The Republic: one at a Gilbert In-N-Out Burger and another at a Gilbert parking garage. He also was pictured on TikTok holding a gun.

He has not been arrested or charged in the two Gilbert beatings. His mother declined comment on the attack videos and the gun photo.

Lord's aunt calls out mothers for 'complete lack of empathy'

Lord's aunt, in an Instagram post Sunday, called out "the mothers of the boys who took my nephew's life."

Addressing the mothers directly, Melissa Lord said they have chosen to remain silent rather than force their sons to accept responsibility for their actions.

"It's been 12 weeks since your boys made the decision, on a dark Halloween weekend, to viciously hit and kick my nephew," she said in the post, which pictured her standing next to a casket.

"84 days since they left his body in a road ... 2,016 hours since they drive away to their warm beds you provided ... 120,960 minutes since they woke the next morning like nothing had happened," she said.

Lord said she has tried many times to put herself in their places.

"At first there was immense compassion," she said. "Then there was raging anger. Now, there is complete and utter disbelief for your complete lack of empathy."

Lord described how the community has rallied around her family with vigils, marches and speeches, turning Preston's favorite color of orange into a symbol for justice.

"Humanity has shown up as an army around our family, decorated the valley in demonstrations of solidarity," she said. "While the masses stand with us; You hide."

Lord said she cannot process what it would be like to know her son took someone's life, then questioned why the mothers weren't willing to lead by example and turn in their sons for the crime.

"Have you not taught them that actions have consequences?" she said.

She ended her post with a reminder of what her family has lost.

"You may be mourning what you thought it would look like to watch your little boys grow up to become men," she said. "But my sister-in-law will never get to see hers grow beyond the touch of baby still detectable in his forever 16 year old face."

Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter for The Republic. Reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8694. Follow him on X @robertanglen.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: OHM Fitness severs ties with Gilbert gym owner over Preston Lord case