'Political powder keg': New details emerge as rancher charged with murder of Mexican citizen returns to court

NOGALES — The prosecuting attorney in the case of the Nogales area rancher who is facing a first-degree murder charge alleged on Wednesday that the rancher shot and killed a Mexican citizen in the back as he ran for his life. 

Kimberly Hunley, chief deputy Santa Cruz County Attorney, alleged that George Alan Kelly shot the unarmed man in an “unprovoked attack” during her remarks at a court hearing at Nogales Justice Court. At least two other people were with the Mexican national as he fled and they were shot at as well, Hunley said.

“Mr. Kelly shot an unarmed man in the back in an unprovoked attack as he ran for his life,” Hunley said during her remarks. “There was no warning and the victim was more than 100 yards from the defendant's residence when he was shot and killed.”

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office filed an amended complaint in Kelly’s case on Tuesday adding two counts of aggravated assault to the initial count of first-degree murder.

The Sheriff's Office said that Kelly, 75, committed aggravated assault using “a rifle, a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument” against two additional victims on Jan. 30, according to the complaint. The two additional victims are only identified by their initials in the complaint. 

Both victims have come forward and provided their statements, Hunley said. There were at least eight people in the group that Kelly encountered on Jan. 30 at his Kino Springs area ranch, according to Hunley. 

The preliminary hearing was pushed to Friday morning where witnesses will be present. 

During a preliminary hearing, the prosecutor must show that there is probable cause that a crime was committed by the defendant. The prosecutor can present evidence and witnesses at the hearing before the judge decides to move forward with the case to trial or dismiss it. 

Hunley mentioned that the prosecution is not providing all of the details in the case so as not to make them publicly known. 

Kelly entered the courtroom in handcuffs, donning a red prison jumpsuit and a bulletproof vest Wednesday morning. As he left the courtroom, Kelly turned to look at his wife, Wanda, who was sitting in attendance at the hearing. 

There was heavy law enforcement and security presence in and out of the court during the hearing. Kelly is held at the Santa Cruz County Adult Detention Center on a $1 million bond. 

Justice of the Peace Emilio Velasquez kept the bond at $1 million on Wednesday but converted the cash bond into a surety bond, a different bond that accepts alternate forms of collateral such as property. 

Kelly’s attorney, Brenna Larkin, called the credibility of the state’s witnesses into question during her remarks, suggesting that they may have been influenced by drug traffickers. Larkin entered a plea of not guilty on Kelly’s behalf for the two additional charges of aggravated assault.

“Testimony is something that is bought and sold by drug traffickers, the same way that drugs and people are bought and sold,” Larkin said during her remarks.

Larkin criticized the investigation of the case for charging Kelly before all the details of the case had been investigated. 

“The state nevertheless jumped the gun and decided to charge premeditated first degree murder,” Larkin said. “This essentially lit a match over a very intense political powder keg and, predictably, there was an explosion.”

The defense's version of events

On Jan. 30, Kelly was eating lunch with his wife when he heard a single gunshot and saw his horse get spooked and run away at full speed, according to court documents. Kelly saw a group of men, armed with AK-47s, moving through the trees on his property.

The men donned khakis and camouflage clothing and carried large backpacks, according to the 13-page motion Larkin filed on Feb. 9. Kelly’s home is roughly a mile and a half north of the U.S.-Mexico border and about 8 miles east of Nogales.

Kelly called the U.S. Border Patrol’s ranch liaison, who is responsible for helping ranchers on the borderlands, and told his wife to stay silent, inside and away from the windows so as not to draw the attention of the men.

Attorney: Nogales rancher charged with murder fired warning shots in self-defense

Kelly walked onto his porch and saw the leader of the group point an AK-47 at him, the motion read. Kelly subsequently fired several warning shots above the heads of the armed men before they scattered into the desert surrounding his property, according to the motion.

Border Patrol agents and Santa Cruz County sheriff's deputies arrived at Kelly’s property and searched for the group but did not find anyone. Authorities documented the incident and left.

As the sun was setting that day, Kelly went to his pastures to check on his horse as he worried it may have been injured during the incident. After seeing to his horse, Kelly noticed that his dogs were focused on something on the ground near a mesquite tree.

“Mr. Kelly approached his dogs, and observed a body lying face down in the grass,” the motion read.

Kelly was “alarmed” by the discovery and put a lit flashlight on the ground to be able to find the body again, according to the motion. He then called the Border Patrol ranch liaison again to report the discovery and request assistance.

The body was that of Gabriel Cuen Buitimea, 48, of Nogales, Sonora. Cuen Buitimea was identified by a Mexican voter registration card he carried.

Cuen Buitimea’s body was found about 100 yards to 150 yards from Kelly’s home with one visible gunshot wound, according to reporting from Nogales International. No weapon or backpack was found on or near Cuen Buitimea, according to the motion.

Cuen Buitimea was wearing tactical boots and had a radio. Santa Cruz County Sheriff's deputies found the body shortly before 6:30 p.m.

Authorities collected two assault-style rifles from Kelly’s home to determine if either had been used in the shooting. Details surrounding Cuen Buitimea’s death remain largely unclear. The time of death and the type of bullet that killed him have not been made public.

Lawyer asks to lower bond, release Kelly

In the Feb. 9 motion, Larkin asked the judge to lower Kelly’s bond and release him, either on his own recognizance or into his wife’s custody. Larkin argued in the motion that the $1 million bond "is clearly excessive and appears to be designed to keep defendant in custody while he fights to maintain his innocence."

Larkin also argued that the “evidence against Mr. Kelly is extremely weak in this case,” citing that no bullet has been found to do testing and determine which gun fired the fatal shot.

What we know: An Arizona rancher is accused of shooting and killing a Mexican citizen

Larkin pointed to the fact that authorities were not able to find a body when they searched Kelly’s home after he fired the warning shots as another example of “weak” evidence in the case, according to the motion.

“Quite simply, this is a case where an innocent man has been wrongfully accused of a crime,” the motion read.

Kelly has received significant threats from other inmates in the jail and has been moved to protective custody where he was on 23-hour lockdown, according to the motion.

Kelly and his wife moved to Arizona in 1997 and bought the Kino Springs-area land in 2002 before building the house in 2008, the motion read. The couple also owns land near Springerville.

Kelly, a North Carolina native, describes himself as “land rich and dollar poor” in the motion.

Have a news tip or story idea about the border and its communities? Contact the reporter at josecastaneda@arizonarepublic.com or connect with him on Twitter @joseicastaneda.