An Uber Eats driver shot and killed two weeks ago in Arizona ensured the capture of her killer when she snapped a photo of him just prior to him shooting her.
Pamela Rae Martinez, 60, was found “in distress and non-responsive” just before 7:30 p.m. in Glendale, Ariz., according to police. Her car had driven off the road and into a landscaping area, and Martinez was pronounced dead at the scene.
Having completed her last delivery, investigators say Martinez took a photo of a man who was sitting in his van next to her car — it’s not clear if she did so because she perceived him to be a threat, but that is a possibility.
The man in the photo was identified as 62-year-old Rusty French, who was located and taken into custody, Fox 10 Phoenix reported.
“French was confronted with the photograph taken of him moments before Martinez was shot and killed,” police said, according to the Fox affiliate. “He admitted that was him in the photograph but said he must have blacked out as to what occurred.
After searching French’s home, police reportedly found several guns, one of which matched the gun used in the shooting, Fox 10 noted, adding that other evidence implicating French in the murder was also found.
The motive behind the shooting is unclear. French and Martinez did not know one another.
The alleged killer was arrested on the charge of second-degree murder and booked into jail. He is being held on a $2 million cash-only bond.
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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