A Valley man is accused of killing his brother following a cell phone dispute that escalated to a foot chase where the victim was shot while hiding under a vehicle.
Tomas Felipe Ruiz, 33, of Concho, is charged on suspicion of first-degree murder in the Aug. 22 shooting death of Tony Twelve Gage Ruiz, 37, according to court documents and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.
Sheriff's deputies arrived around 10:30 a.m. to a home in the area of 360th Avenue and Paradise Road in Tonopah about a homicide and found Tony Ruiz, who was later pronounced dead, underneath a vehicle, according to court documents.
The suspected assailant, Tomas Ruiz, was at the scene, along with multiple witnesses, court documents said. The boyfriend of the brothers' mother,
was also present and had a gunshot wound to his arm, court documents said. Tomas Ruiz and the wounded man were taken to a hospital, according to the documents.
The mother of the men told deputies the two were in a verbal argument that turned physical before Tomas Ruiz grabbed a firearm and started shooting and chasing Tony Ruiz around a vehicle, according to court documents. Tony Ruiz crawled under the vehicle while trying to hide from Tomas Ruiz before the suspect kneeled to the ground and shot him once, their mother told deputies, charging documents said.
The wounded man told deputies he saw Tomas Ruiz and Tony Ruiz get into a fight and saw the suspect grab a firearm, according to court documents. The man informed deputies that he told Tomas Ruiz he was going to jail, prompting the suspect to shoot him in the arm, charging documents said. The man told deputies he saw Tomas Ruiz point the gun underneath the vehicle and shoot towards the victim, according to charging documents.
At the hospital, Tomas Ruiz received medical care for an injured leg and was then taken to a sheriff's office station where he said he got into a dispute with Tony Ruiz about a missing cellphone before they got into a fight, according to court documents. Tomas Ruiz told investigators that when the fight ended, he grabbed a gun belonging to Tony Ruiz, who chased him, according to court documents. During the chase, Tomas Ruiz told investigators, he discharged the gun multiple times before tossing it, court documents said.
Tomas Ruiz told investigators he realized his mother's boyfriend was shot, so he started rendering medical care to him, according to court documents.
He also told them, "no,' when asked whether he killed his brother and told them, "no," when asked whether he knelt down to the ground to shoot him, court documents said.
Tomas Ruiz was booked into jail Aug. 22 and was also being charged on suspicion of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, according to court documents.
Tomas Ruiz has a preliminary hearing set for Sept. 1, according to court records. As of Aug. 25, he was being held on a $1 million bond, according to jail records.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix-area shooting leaves man dead, brother charged in his slaying
