Charges filed against man in his son’s death
A criminal complaint was filed Thursday in Wellton Justice Court against the Mesa man who allegedly killed his son and dumped his body along Interstate 8 in Yuma County.
When 36-year-old Jose Gallardo appeared before Justice of the Peace Russ Jones for his arraignment, he was informed that he was being charged with 10 felony offenses.
Those offenses include six counts of aggravated assault per domestic violence, first-degree murder per domestic violence, aggravated DUI and criminal damage.
After assigning a court-appointed attorney to represent him, Jones also ordered that Gallardo’s bail be increased to a $2 million cash-only bond, up from the $500,000 amount it had previously been set at.
Gallardo’s next hearing was set for 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 22. His case will likely go before the grand jury before then. If that happens, the next hearing will be in Yuma County Superior Court.
According to the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office, the incident happened at approximately 7:15 a.m. on Monday when deputies responded to a report of a man lying along the shoulder of the roadway in the area of mile marker 65 on Interstate 8.
Troopers from the Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS), however, were the first to arrive on scene and had already located the man, who had apparent gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead.
While deputies were on scene, they received a report of a vehicle collision on Interstate 8 near mile marker 54. One of the vehicles involved in that collision was later found out to have been involved in the homicide.
The YCSO Criminal Investigations Bureau responded and assumed the investigation.
The driver of the car suspected of being involved in the killing, however, fled the scene on foot and was believed to still be in the vicinity, prompting a search of the area.
Subsequently identified as Gallardo, he was found several hours later the same day in the desert a short distance away with aerial assistance from Western Sky Helicopters.
Gallardo, who is also the father of the slain man, was arrested and booked into the Yuma County jail.
The victim has been identified as 19-year-old Mario Nez of Tempe.