Mexican migrant recounts shooting involving rancher
A Mexican man testified Friday about the moment when a fellow migrant was shot and killed on an Arizona ranch as they illegally crossed the U.S.-Mexico border.
The man, who was referred to by the initials D.R.R. to protect his identity, said through a Spanish-speaking interpreter that the shots rang out without warning and that because of this, his group didn't know where they were coming from.
“I did nothing. I saw Gabriel,” he said, referring to the 48-year-old man who was killed, Gabriel CuenBuitimea. “He held his chest and said `I'm hit.' He rolled his eyes and fell down.”
The testimony came during an evidentiary hearing in a Nogales, Arizona, courtroom for George Alan Kelly, the 74-year-old rancher accused of killing Cuen-Buitimea.
Kelly is charged with one count of second-degree murder and two counts of aggravated assault against two migrants, including the one who testified Friday.
His attorney, Brenna Larkin, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.
Kelly was initially charged with first-degree murder, but prosecutors lowered the charge. They didn't explain why during the hearing.
Larkin asked for a postponement of the hearing so that she could prepare for the new charge, but Justice of the Peace Emilio G. Velasquez denied her request.
The hearing in Santa Cruz County Justice Court was also intended to determine issues of material fact in the case and allow Kelly's defense to call witnesses. As of mid-afternoon, only the migrant D.R.R. and a county sheriff's detective had testified.
D.R.R. testified that he and Cuen-Buitimea had paid for passage across the border on Jan. 30 from Nogales, Mexico, and were heading to Phoenix. He also said neither of them was carrying a weapon. Cuen-Buitimea was wearing a green camouflage backpack as well as a bag on his belt.
According to D.R.R., they were 3-4 yards (meters) from the road when they suddenly heard gunfire. It was around the fourth round that CuenBuitimea was wounded, but 15 or 16 shots were fired in all, he testified.