In the late afternoon of June 22, 2016, a tragic and violent encounter unfolded on the streets of Nampa, Idaho, ending the life of 25-year-old Ricardo Keith, a male originally from Alabama. Keith was behind the wheel of his blue pickup truck, with a female passenger beside him, near the intersection of Florida Avenue and Ivy Street. The events that led to this fatal moment began earlier at a local home where Keith had gone to purchase heroin.
During the transaction, he revealed a substantial amount of cash, an act that caught the attention of others in the house, including a man he had never met before, 31-year-old Jesus “AJ” Avila.
Driven by what prosecutors would later call "pure greed," Avila decided to rob Keith. After Keith and his girlfriend left the house, Avila got into his own vehicle, a white Oldsmobile Cutlass, and drove to the intersection of Florida and Ivy to wait. When Keith's pickup approached, Avila blocked the truck with his car. He then got out, approached Keith's vehicle, and demanded the money in an aggressive and intimidating manner. Within moments, the confrontation escalated, and Avila fired a single shot, striking Keith. He then fled the scene, leaving his victim mortally wounded. Emergency services were called, and Keith was rushed to a local hospital, but he did not survive his injuries. The female passenger in Keith's truck was unharmed.
The Nampa Police Department quickly launched an investigation. They soon identified Jesus "AJ" Avila as the primary suspect and issued a warrant for his arrest on a charge of first-degree murder by robbery. Investigators located the Oldsmobile Cutlass believed to have been used in the crime, but Avila had already fled. Law enforcement, including the United States Marshals Greater Idaho Fugitive Task Force, began a search for the armed and dangerous suspect. The manhunt concluded a week later when authorities located and arrested Avila in Yakima, Washington, without incident.
Following his arrest, the legal process moved forward. In a recorded phone call from jail to his wife, Avila admitted to the shooting, stating he had heard Keith was carrying a large sum of money and that he was tired of struggling. On October 7, 2016, Jesus "AJ" Avila pleaded guilty to first-degree murder. In court, it was revealed that Avila and Keith were strangers prior to the day of the shooting. Avila's defense attorney noted that his client was intoxicated at the time of the crime and wished he could take it back. In December 2016, a judge sentenced Avila to life in prison, with the possibility of parole after 25 years.
