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A man waiting at a bus stop and another victim outside the bus stop surprise The shootings at the strip mall come just weeks apart, in what police say was a random shooting by a suspect riding an e-bike.
According to the Phoenix Police Department, 21-year-old Adalberto Pablo Cordova Torres has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of 29-year-old Andreas Samuel Olguin and 45-year-old Marcus Adams.
He is also accused of having a weapon at a residence. Police say ballistics and surveillance evidence link him to three separate shootings over 18 days last month.
Investigators allege the violence began on November 11, when a homeowner near First Drive and Greenway Parkway woke up to find his home riddled with bullets. Authorities responded at around 2 a.m. and recovered 10 shell casings on the road. No one was injured.
Nearly two weeks later, around 3 a.m. on November 24, police were called to a report of shots fired outside a strip mall near 19th Avenue and Greenway Road. Adams suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Surveillance video reportedly showed a suspect approaching Adams before the shooting began. Fourteen shell casings were recovered, and a later autopsy revealed that Adams had been shot nine times.
Less than a week later, Olguín was murdered at a bus stop near 19th Avenue and Thunderbird Road.
Police say officers responded shortly before 2 a.m. on Nov. 29 and found Olguin dead from multiple gunshot wounds. Investigators recovered 15 shell casings, and the medical examiner determined that Olguín had been shot 11 times.
“Never in a million years would I have thought that my son would be sitting at a bus stop and someone would come up to him and be angry at him for no reason,” said Toni Perez, Olguin’s mother. KSAZ,
Perez said detectives told him the suspect did not know his son and the shooting appeared to be random.
He added, “This is where I’m angry.” “Nobody deserves this. I’m going to demand justice for my son and Marcus. He deserves it too.”
Phoenix police say surveillance footage of the Olguin shooting shows a man on an electric bicycle stopping near a bus stop moments before the shooting. In both shootings, the suspect fled south on 19th Avenue across Cactus Road on an e-bike.
Shell casings from all three scenes were entered into the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network and it was determined that all 39 recovered 9 mm shell casings were fired from the same gun.
“Once the ballistic evidence from the three cases was fully processed, a connection was found between the cases and all three cases were linked through this ballistic evidence,” the department said in the release. “Case agents from all three cases began working together in an effort to identify the suspect.”
Detectives also reviewed surveillance video from the surrounding areas and identified specific clothing, including a camouflage backpack. Police say cell phone data shows a single phone was present near each crime scene at the time of the shooting. The phone was reportedly registered in the name of Cordova Torres, who lived just south of 19th Avenue and Cactus Road.
Police also determined that all three at the crime scene had the same cellphone, allegedly registered to Cordova Torres, at the time of the crime. Investigators found he lived just south of 19th Avenue and Cactus Road.
Further investigation led detectives to body-camera footage from November 10, which showed a Phoenix police officer talking to Cordova Torres in a nearby park. According to court documents, he was riding an e-bike and wearing a backpack consistent with what was seen in surveillance footage.
Investigators learned that Cordova Torres worked nights at a business near 7th Street and Bell Road. Management reportedly confirmed that he was working until approximately midnight on the dates of both murders.
Cordova Torres is being held in the Maricopa County Jail on $3 million bond and is due back in court on December 11. Police have not identified a motive and said it was unclear whether Cordova Torres knew any of the victims.
Family and friends gathered Saturday night for a candlelight vigil at the bus stop where Olguín was killed, and honored her life with photos, flowers and candles.
Olguin’s mother wrote in a gofundme, Created to help cover funeral and burial expenses, their son loved cars, camping and the bond they shared with friends and family.
“Despite the challenges he faced, he always had a smile no matter what he was going through,” she wrote. “He had a big heart and loved everyone he met.”