A 22-year-old man already in custody for a January killing has been charged with a second murder following a fatal shooting last weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina. Angelvis Jesus Quintero Fernandez was served with updated warrants on Wednesday while being held under an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer. Authorities claim he was living in the country without legal authorisation.
The most recent case began in the early hours of Sunday, March 22, when Charlotte-Mecklenburg police responded to an assault call on Abermarle Road. Officers discovered Luis Guitierrez Mora on the ground suffering from a gunshot wound at around 2:12 a.m. Mora was gunned down after a fight outside the El Paisano Restaurante, according to WSOC-TV. While Mora was taken to hospital, Fernandez was arrested the following day on an unrelated charge.
During that arrest, police linked him to the January shooting death of 44-year-old Ludvin Antonio Guzman Morales. The first homicide occurred along Central Avenue, where Morales was shot multiple times while trying to intervene in a fight. Investigators linked the cases because spent bullet casings from the January scene matched the gun used in the Albemarle Road shooting, just two miles away.
The investigation progressed quickly after Fernandez allegedly confessed to shooting Mora during a police interview. Court documents reveal he confessed to shooting both victims. He was initially booked on charges including attempted first-degree murder, felony conspiracy and possession of a stolen firearm. However, the charges were upgraded after Mora died from his injuries on Tuesday.
Fernandez appeared in court this week, where he was denied bond. He faces two counts of first-degree murder and is held under an ICE detainer. He remains in Mecklenburg County Jail as the judicial process for both homicides moves forward.
