Mesa police arrest suspect in death of man found in Porter Park
Jul 31, 2021, 6:15 AM
(Photo by Mesa Police Department)
(Photo by Mesa Police Department)
PHOENIX — Police have arrested a suspect in the death of a 42-year-old man in Mesa back in June, officials announced Wednesday.
Officers responded to Porter Park near Mesa Drive and Eighth Street on June 9 just before 5 a.m. about reports of shots fired, according to the Mesa Police Department.
Investigators determined Sean Newton, 21, as a suspect through a witness who told officers that two men, one of which he knew, approached he and the victim in the park and started cursing and yelling at them.
As the victim, Tyrone Francisco, 42, walked away from the confrontation, the witness said the man shot him.
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Officers located and interviewed both men from the scene on Tuesday, July 27, when Newton admitted to shooting and killing Francisco.
He said Francisco lunged at him with a knife, but police said no knife was located at the scene or on the victim, according to the probable cause statement.
Newton was booked into jail for one count of second-degree homicide and is being held on a $500,000 bond.
