On the night of October 6, 2017, 26-year-old tow truck driver Alfredo Palencia was shot and killed inside the cab of his tow truck while removing an improperly parked SUV at an apartment complex near 32nd Street and McDowell Road in Phoenix. Co-workers at Go Tow remembered Palencia for his infectious laughter and constant smile; family and friends described him as a good guy who didn’t deserve this.

Surveillance footage from the complex later led investigators to 27-year-old Billy Wayne West Jr. The video allegedly shows West leaving a birthday party, pulling a handgun from his waistband and pointing it at the driver’s side window. Court documents state West’s two children were with him and witnessed the shooting, and witnesses at the scene identified West as the shooter. After his arrest, West said he had no memory of the night, claiming he had been drinking, and reportedly acknowledged a surveillance photo could be him. West was charged with first-degree murder and held on $750,000 bond.