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Fugitive Files: Man wanted in Mother's Day shooting 6:20 AM
06:20 AM EDT on Tuesday, July 22, 2008
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- There's a cross where David Morales died.
“The bullets came one after another,” said Morales' cousin, who didn't want to be named.
Another witness, Nayya Bey, was in her bathroom when she heard the shots on May 10 and came flying downstairs to see what was going on.
“I heard a bunch of crying and screaming,” she said.
Morales was a construction worker and father of two. He died in his cousin’s arms.
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“My cousin actually died in my hands. I pulled him out of the car and dragged him to the sidewalk.”
Bey saw his final moments.
“He wasn't moving. He wasn't responsive,” she told us.
Police say his killer is the victim's brother-in-law, Ruben Padron.
The Violent Criminal Apprehension Team has been looking for Padron since the May 10 shooting. Sgt. Steven Winterhalter heads up the team.
“Pretty much just a cold-blooded murder, shot him multiple times,” he said.
Family members tell us just before the shooting the two had been celebrating at a Mother’s Day party. They say the two men argued and Padron left, and then came back with the gun.
Morales was shot in the face, chest and arm. Bullets hit nearby homes and a passenger in the car with Morales was also shot in the arm. She was treated at a hospital and then released.
Police have been looking for Padron ever since.
Bey wants him caught.
“I'm definitely concerned because they haven’t found him. It doesn't make sense to me, if he’s a brother-in-law, he’s family. They should know where he is.”
VCAT members say they’ve gotten several leads but so far haven’t found Padron. They say he typically works in construction and they believe he’s still in the area.
If you have any information, call the VCAT hotline at 704-336-8228.
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