An Odessa man pleaded guilty to murder and was sentenced to 15 years in prison Thursday in the December 2021 death of a 22-year-old man.
Eduardo Levario Nicolas, 20, entered a plea agreement while the jury was deliberating, said defense attorney Phillip Wildman. He had been facing five years to life in prison in the shooting death of Alexander Juarez.
According to court documents, Odessa police officers found Juarez dead in a driveway in the 1300 block of North Lauderdale Avenue on Dec. 16, 2021.
Police were told by a witness, whose name was redacted from the probable cause affidavit, that Juarez’s truck, a white 2009 GMC pickup, was parked in the driveway in front of the redacted person’s vehicle. The witness stated Juarez asked them to move their vehicle so he could leave.
The witness stated when they backed out of the driveway there was a blue Mustang parked at the curb just north of the driveway, the affidavit detailed. The witness stated they drove south down the street and made a U-turn and when they came back the blue Mustang was backed into the driveway and a Hispanic man got out of the driver’s side and started shooting at Juarez.
The witness told police the Hispanic man fled the scene going north on Lauderdale Avenue in the blue Mustang. The witness stated Juarez walked toward the end of the drive and said he’d been shot and fell to the ground.
The witness stated another person, whose name has been redacted, was in the house at the time of the shooting, left in his pickup truck in an attempt to find the suspect but didn’t find them, the affidavit detailed.
Police found a brown pistol and several casings on the ground next to the white GMC. Officers also saw several bullet holes in the white GMC and a large amount of cash on the ground next to the open driver’s door. On the front seat of the truck was a white kitchen trash bag filled with marijuana that was in plain sight.
During a perimeter search, a large duffel bag of marijuana in vacuum sealed bags was found in a dumpster in the west alley, a couple houses south of the residence, the affidavit stated.
The two witnesses whose names were redacted were transported to OPD for interviews. One of the witnesses agreed to an interview and told police when they came out of the house they found a large duffel bag of marijuana lying on the ground near Juarez’s body.
The witness admitted to police that they picked up the duffel bag and threw the bag in the dumpster in the alley because they were afraid of getting in trouble.
A search warrant was obtained for the residence on North Lauderdale Avenue and more evidence was collected that indicated Juarez was distributing and selling narcotics, the affidavit stated.
The cash found by Juarez’s vehicle was processed for prints and came back with an AFIS (Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems) hit for Nicolas. A records search for Nicolas showed a black and white Ford Mustang to be registered to him.
On Dec. 22, officers conducted a traffic stop on Nicolas’ vehicle and asked him to go to OPD for questioning about the shooting and he agreed, the affidavit stated. A passenger in the car, whose name was also redacted in the probable cause affidavit, with Nicolas was also brought to OPD for questions and they agreed to an interview.
The passenger told police that Nicolas said on Dec. 16 that he went to see a friend and the friend had a gun. Nicolas told the passenger the friend pulled the gun and “racked it” and Nicolas got scared and started shooting at the friend. The passenger told police Nicolas was unusually quiet after the shooting.
