In the quiet evening of June 23, 2024, the life of 31-year-old Adam Christopher Avalos, a Hispanic male, was tragically cut short in Safford, Arizona. Reports of gunfire drew Safford Police to the Copper Springs RV Park on South 8th Avenue at approximately 9:37 p.m. Upon their arrival, officers discovered Avalos deceased in the parking area of a residence, the victim of a fatal shooting.
The scene was quickly secured by officers from the Safford and Thatcher Police Departments, as well as deputies from the Graham County Sheriff's Office, as an active homicide investigation commenced.
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, the Safford Police Department identified 19-year-old Chezerae Arrellin Jr., also of Safford, as a person of interest in connection with Avalos's death. Authorities publicly sought information regarding Arrellin's whereabouts, noting he had been missing since the incident. The search for Arrellin concluded four days later when he was located and arrested in Yuma.
While Arrellin was apprehended, his arrest was made on an outstanding Graham County Superior Court warrant for a petition to revoke his probation on unrelated cases from 2022 and 2023, which included charges of theft, fraudulent use of a credit card, and possession of a weapon by a prohibited person. He was subsequently extradited back to Graham County. Though he remains a person of interest in the ongoing homicide investigation of Adam Avalos, no charges have been filed against him in that case. Arrellin has since been sentenced to prison for his probation violation and also faces separate, significant drug charges, including the sale of fentanyl.
