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February 12, 2023 | 10:30 PM
George Alan Kelly’s lawyers claim they found the man’s body hours after he fired warning shots at the gunmen.
Jiro
An elderly Arizona rancher accused of murdering a Mexican man later found the man dead on his property only to fire a “warning shot” after a group of men aimed their assault rifles at him. found, his defense attorney claimed.
George Alan Kelly — who is facing first-degree premeditated murder charges in the shooting death of a Mexican citizen believed to be 48-year-old Gabriel Kuen Buttimea — was shot in self-defense when he fired his rifle on January 30. acted.His Court-appointed Attorney Brena Larkin said in court documents obtained by Fox News.
Kelly, 78, reportedly saw men in camouflage running through the woods near his home after hearing one gunshot while on a ranch near the border.
“He didn’t know any of them. He didn’t give any of them permission to come to his land,” she said in the filing.
Kelly called a U.S. Border Patrol ranch liaison and walked out onto the porch with a rifle, court documents said.
He then found himself looking down the barrel of an AK-47 rifle, his attorney said.
“The armed group leader saw Mr. Kelly and pointed an AK-47 at him,” Larkin wrote. “Mr. Kelly, concerned for his life and safety, fired several shots from his rifle. “
The group fled, and Border Patrol and Santa Cruz County sheriff’s deputies responded to Kelly’s ranch. They walked his property but did not find the rest of the men and left.
A few hours later, as Kelly was checking the horse’s condition, a dog led him to the dead body of a Mexican national “lying face down in the grass” near a mesquite tree, Larkin said. writing.
According to his attorney, he called the Border Patrol Ranch liaison again to report the body and cooperate with investigators.
Authorities determined the man was unarmed and an “alien” who died from a single gunshot wound.
In a law enforcement interview, the man in his 70s “confirmed firing warning shots at smugglers earlier in the day, but denied firing directly at anyone,” Larkin wrote. .
“He does not believe that any of his warning shots could have hit a person or caused death,” she added. All shootings were in self-defense and justified.”
Larkin said authorities did not specify the type of gun that shot the victim or the time of death.
Kelly is being held at the Santa Cruz County Jail on $1 million bail. His next court date is he is scheduled for February 22nd.
