Smoke shop customer who fatally shot would-be robber charged with second-degree murder

LAS CRUCES - Chuko Sandoval told detectives that he stuck around inside a smoke shop on a late December evening after making a purchase because another man was "acting weird" and making the clerks uncomfortable.

When the other man — later identified as Anthony D. Malone — tried to steal watches from a display case and then ran to an exit, Sandoval took out his gun and shot Malone, killing him.

Five months later, a Doña Ana County grand jury indicted Sandoval on a second-degree murder charge.

Malone, 26, died Dec. 20, 2021, as he was shot attempting to leave the Red Eye Smoke and Gift Shop on the 1400 block of Missouri Avenue.

An affidavit written by Las Cruces Det. Adam Medina and released Monday sheds light on what happened before and after Malone was shot.

'Why did you do that?'

The evening of Dec. 20, Malone entered the Red Eye Smoke and Gift Shop, two clerks working at the time told police. The female clerks — one a manager and one an employee — shared similar stories with police.

According to the manager, Malone had been in the shop for about an hour. He was "acting very suspicious," she told police, further stating, he "would continuously look and be around the employee entrance to gain access behind the counter."

Sandoval was also in the store at this time and purchased items. He told police he could sense that Malone was making the female clerks uncomfortable and told the employee that he would stick around.

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The employee who was manning one of the counters told police she suspected Malone "was going to do something," and explained this to her manager, the affidavit stated.

The manager then took over the counter where Malone was awaiting service, according to the affidavit.

The manager told police she showed Malone a container with about $300 worth of watches in it and that Malone tried to grab it. She said she grabbed the container back from Malone, who then grabbed her shoulders, pushed her back and ran for an exit.

Sandoval told police he drew his Glock 17 9mm and told Malone to stop. Malone didn't stop, Sandoval said, so he shot twice. He told police he was aiming for Malone's shoulder, but hit him in his chest.

Witnesses told police they heard Sandoval say, "why did you do that?" as he attended to Malone. Sandoval told police he ran outside and told a woman to call 911 and then got a rag to assist others in trying to help Malone.

Police responded to a call of a gunshot victim about 7:41 p.m., the affidavit stated.

Sandoval stayed on scene and was cooperative with detectives, the arresting officer stated.

What else we know

Malone, who died at the scene, was facing a jury trial in April 2022 after police said he robbed a Circle K in Las Cruces in 2019. Police believe that Malone used a gun to steal $45 from the convenience store before fleeing. He had pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Malone did not have a weapon on him when he died, according to witness statements.

Gabriela Trujillo, Malone's mother, told the Sun-News in December that her son worked odd jobs around town. That included jobs at barbershops and construction sites.

Though Sandoval was taken into custody the night of the shooting, it's not clear whether he was ever incarcerated at the Doña Ana County Detention Center. A court record states he was charged with first degree murder on the day of the shooting.

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Sandoval is not currently at the jail, according to publicly available records.

In New Mexico, those accused of killing another can be charged with first-degree murder, second-degree murder or manslaughter. First-degree murder is defined as willful, deliberate or premeditated while manslaughter is accidental. Prosecutors will charge someone with second-degree murder when the alleged offense is somewhere in between.

A person convicted of second-degree murder can be sentenced up to 15 years in prison.

Lucas Peerman can be reached at lpeerman@lcsun-news.com or @LittleGuyInATie on Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: Customer who fatally shot would-be robber charged with second-degree murder