Last defendant gets life in Arivaca anti-immigrant murders
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Arivaca resident Albert Gaxiola was sentenced Monday to two life terms, one without the possibility of release, in the June 2009 deaths of a 9-year-old girl and her father.
Gaxiola, 44, was convicted last month of first-degree murder in the deaths of Brisenia Flores and her father, Raul Junior Flores. The jurors spared Gaxiola the death penalty for the murder of Raul Flores, but could not reach a unanimous decision as to his punishment in the girl’s death.
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Prosecutors believe Gaxiola recruited Shawna Forde and Jason Bush to kill Flores, an Arivaca resident, because the 29-year-old was a competitor in the drug-smuggling business. Forde, they said, agreed to participate, hoping proceeds from the subsequent robbery would fund her Minuteman organization.
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Albert Gaxiola took part in the June 2009 shootings that left two dead and one wounded from the same family. BENJIE SANDERS / ARIZONA DAILY STAR
Shawna Forde received the death penalty earlier this year for her role in the shootings, which were believed to be drug-related. DAVID SANDERS / ARIZONA DAILY STAR
Jason Bush also received the death penalty earlier this year. He was the triggerman in the Arivaca case and is also accused in two Washington state killings. MAMTA POPAT / ARIZONA DAILY STAR
Brisenia Flores