Anthony Malone was a 26-year-old Hispanic man from Las Cruces, New Mexico, who worked odd jobs at barbershops and construction sites. His mother, Gabriela Trujillo, said he had a heart and cared about people. No matter what he was doing, he made time to check in with her at least once a week. The day before he died, he spoke with his mother on the phone and sounded happy. "He said he was doing good," she recalled, "(and that) his mother raised a warrior."
He had celebrated his birthday just two weeks earlier.
On the evening of December 20, 2021, Malone was at the Red Eye Smoke and Gift Shop on Missouri Avenue. According to police, he had been in the store for about an hour, acting suspiciously and making the female clerks uncomfortable. Another man, Chuko Sandoval, was a customer in the shop. After making a purchase, Sandoval told an employee he would stick around because he sensed Malone was making the clerks uneasy. A manager showed Malone a container of watches, and Malone tried to grab it from her. After she pulled the container back, Malone grabbed her shoulders, pushed her, and ran toward an exit.
As Malone ran for the door, Sandoval drew his gun and told him to stop. When Malone did not stop, Sandoval shot him. According to a news release from the Doña Ana County District Attorney, Malone was shot in the back three times as he was trying to run out of the shop. He died at the scene. Witnesses told police they heard Sandoval say, "why did you do that?" as he tried to attend to Malone. Sandoval ran outside to have someone call 911 and returned with a rag to help.
Sandoval remained at the scene and was cooperative with detectives who interviewed him that night. Initially, no arrests were made in the case. Five months later, in May 2022, a Doña Ana County grand jury indicted Chuko Sandoval on a charge of second-degree murder in connection with Anthony Malone's death. As of May 2022, the case was proceeding through the legal system.
