PHOENIX — A man who allegedly shot and killed a tow truck driver on Sept. 1, 2021, in Phoenix has been arrested, according to court paperwork and jail records.
Phoenix police said they responded to the area of 35th Avenue and Buckeye Road around 5 p.m. on Sept. 1 for a reported stabbing call and found 31-year-old Evanni Corona inside his tow truck with a gunshot wound.
He was transported to the hospital where he later died, police said.
According to court paperwork, police arrested 29-year-old Mauricio Delgadilla Garcia in connection to Corona's death. Garcia was booked into jail on charges of premeditated first-degree murder, vehicle theft, and possession of a weapon by a prohibited person.
Police said through their investigation they learned that Garcia and Corona were involved in a business dispute back in June. Garcia reportedly accused Corona of stealing from his business.
That argument escalated to a shooting, police said, where Garcia allegedly shot Corona twice and claimed it was in self-defense.
Garcia was originally arrested on September 14 for failure to show identification during a traffic stop. During that stop, Garcia claimed his vehicle was recently stolen and he was unaware of multiple guns that were found inside.
The following day, police received a tip about a black Jeep Liberty at a motel. During their investigation, police determined Garcia had been the driver of the vehicle and it had previously been reported stolen.
Police also confirmed that it was the same Jeep that was spotted on surveillance video speeding and aggressively following Corona on Sept. 1, prior to the latest shooting.
Corona's wife and co-workers told police that Corona received death threats from Garcia following their June argument.
When questioned by police, Garcia said he had no contact with Corona after the June incident and denied being involved in Corona's shooting and death.
