Both a federal grand jury and a Pima County grand jury have indicted a formerly deported man in a deadly midtown ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ crime spree in June, officials say.
Julio Aguirre — a 42-year-old ex-con who’d previously been deported to Mexico after a term in an ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ prison — faces multiple charges ranging from first-degree murder, prohibited possession and burglary.
Aguirre was deported from the United States in 2013, but was residing in the United States when authorities say he shot and killed 70-year-old Ricky Miller, Sr. during an attempted carjacking on June 30. The shooting was part of a three-hour crime spree that included armed home invasions.
Aguirre was hospitalized after police found him hiding in a shed.
The case has sparked a feud between county and federal prosecutors.
People are also reading…
County Attorney Laura Conover has complained that federal authorities took Aguirre into custody while he was still at the hospital and that access to him by prosecutors in her office has been limited.
Conover says her office plans to exhaust all legal options to move the case forward.
Conover’s office is fighting to keep Aguirre in Pima County to face his local charges, she said.
“Although the federal prosecutors office continues to focus on their carjacking case, we now have an indictment for first-degree murder and many other counts in order to seek justice for all eight victims who suffered harm that day,†Conover said. “We will continue to do everything possible to work this prosecution normally, despite the obstruction faced.â€
Federal officials counter that Aguirre committed crimes under their jurisdiction.
“The alleged series of crimes in the indictment, starting with illegal immigration, escalating to prohibited possession of a firearm, and culminating in the death of an innocent individual is why the United States Attorney’s Office takes this matter so seriously,†Timothy Courchaine, the US Attorney for ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥, said in a news release.
Feds note that the alleged carjacking resulting in death is a serious federal offense and that the FBI, in partnership with the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s office remain steadfast in their pursuit for justice in this case.
Aguirre is currently in federal custody.
