A judge on Friday sentenced a 30-year-old Pharr man to a decade in prison on a drug charge stemming from a May 2016 fatal shooting at the mud pits in south McAllen.
Jesus Alejandro Cuevas pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance, and in exchange, prosecutors moved to dismiss a murder charge, which state District Judge Mario E. Ramirez Jr. granted.
Cuevas was charged with shooting and killing Moises Tamez, 22, on May 22, 2016, in the parking lot of a Stripes convenience store at about 9 p.m.
Responding officers found Tamez face down with a gunshot wound to his head in the 5700 block of South 10th Street, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Police records obtained by The Monitor at the time indicated the shooting followed a dispute earlier in the day between Tamez and several people.
The newspaper previously reported that a fist fight broke out between several other people in the Stripes’ parking lot prior to the fatal shooting.
The drug charge that Cuevas pleaded guilty to stems from a search of his residence following his arrest. Police found 33 grams of cocaine at his house.
The 10-year sentence will run concurrent with Cuevas’ April 13 federal 10-year sentence on a charge of selling, distributing or dispensing a controlled substance.
While Cuevas was out on bond on his murder case, special agents with the DEA arrested him after learning he was trying to recover approximately two pounds of cocaine.
Special agents coordinated an operation to deliver sham cocaine to Cuevas on June 18, 2021, and set up surveillance at the meeting location, according to a criminal complaint.
When Cuevas arrived, the DEA arrested him, and a search of his residence resulted in the discovery of nearly 31 pounds of cocaine and a .22 caliber firearm.
As for his state sentence, Cuevas received credit for the nearly two years that he has already spent behind bars.
