Motorist was killed after looking at another driver the wrong way, Phoenix police say
PHOENIX – A Phoenix man was arrested this week on suspicion of shooting and killing another man who looked at him while stopped at a red light in March, authorities say.
Nicolas Elliott, 30, was booked into a Maricopa County jail Thursday on suspicion of first-degree murder, aggravated assault, misconduct involving weapons and drug-related charges, according to the Phoenix Police Department.
Police, in a press release, said Elliott shot and killed 26-year-old Alex W. Mixon on March 1 about 3:15 a.m., "for merely looking at him while stopped at a red traffic light."
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Mixon was traveling west on Thunderbird Road in a Dodge pickup truck at the time of the shooting, according to the police press release.
The shooting caused the truck to cross into eastbound lanes and leave the roadway, according to police. The truck hit a power pole and then traveled through a wall before coming to a stop.
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Mixon was taken to a nearby hospital, where he later died of his injuries, according to the police press release. He was the sole occupant of the truck, according to Maricopa County court documents.
Police say they originally believed the incident was a single-vehicle collision. However, an autopsy on March 2 revealed Mixon had been shot and his death was determined to be a homicide, court documents say.
Elliott fled the scene after the shooting, the court documents say.
Surveillance video from the area of 32nd Street and Thunderbird Road, which police say was the closest major intersection to the shooting, showed Mixon stopped at a red light March 1 about 2:40 a.m. when a larger pickup truck stopped directly beside him in a left-turn lane, according to court documents. The video shows the larger truck did not turn left onto 32nd Street and instead continued west on Thunderbird Road while Mixon followed, the court documents add.
The shooting and collision that followed were out of the camera's view, court documents say.
An anonymous person reported in July that they overheard Elliott talking about shooting someone in the face earlier this year because the man gave him a dirty look while they were stopped next to each other at an intersection, according to the court documents.
Three other people interviewed by police said they were present at the time of the shooting, according to court documents. They said Mixon "merely looked over at (Elliott) which in turn enraged (him) to fire his handgun at (Mixon)," the court documents add.
Other witnesses interviewed by police said Elliott bragged about the shooting, according to court documents.
During an interview with police Thursday, Elliott said he remembered arguing with a man while at a red light, the court documents say. He said he had forgotten whether he fired a weapon at the man but said "if he could go back in time, he would take the incident back," the court documents say.
Police say Elliott also admitted that firearms and drugs found during his arrest belonged to him, according to court documents.
Elliott is being held on a $1 million bond and is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 3, according to court documents.
Follow Chelsea Curtis on Twitter: @curtis_chels.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Nicolas Elliott arrested in shooting death of a motorist in Phoenix
