MESA, Ariz. — A pair of brothers are now under arrest in connection to the death of a Mesa man.
The Mesa Police Department arrested 36-year-old Jesus Baez-Franco and 26-year-old Oscar Baez-Franco in connection to the incident. Jesus was charged with second-degree murder for the shooting death of his male roommate.
Oscar was charged with disorderly conduct-reckless discharge of a weapon.
According to police, on Feb. 16 around 6:30 a.m., officers responded to an apartment near Mesa Drive and Southern Avenue for reports of a man in the bathroom with a gun.
Once officers arrived on the scene, three people reportedly exited the apartment through the bedroom windows. Officials said a person told officers there was a man inside with a gun.
Another person, identified as Jesus Baez-Franco, told officers that while he was in the bedroom, he heard someone inside the apartment rack a gun slide, police said. Jesus also reportedly said he shot his own firearm through the closed bathroom door toward the main living area of the apartment.
Oscar allegedly told officers he awoke to a gunshot and opened his bedroom door to see his brother. After his brother said, “they are coming for us,” Oscar allegedly fired his own handgun into the floor of the hallway, according to authorities.
During the initial search of the scene, Mesa officers found an unidentified man dead inside the apartment with gunshot wounds to his body, police said.
Authorities stated both brothers identified the dead man with a nickname and confirmed he stayed in the apartment with them. After serving a search warrant on the apartment, officers found methamphetamine in the living room.
Jesus was later booked into jail on several charges and is being held on a $1,000,000 bond.
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