Bartow, Fla.-(Newsradio WFLA)-Twenty eight year-old Joshua Jay Pacheco has surrendered to Polk County deputies in connection with a deadly shooting at the Citgo Food Market on Highway 17, North, in Bartow last weekend. He was wanted for two outstanding warrants: possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and violation of probation.
Pacheco told detectives he was waiting for her girlfriend to pick him up when an unknown man, 29-year-old Julian Garcia of Apopka, walked over and started attacking him and threatening to kill him. Pacheco said they both fell to the ground and he admitted to displaying a handgun. He said the gun went off because Garcia attempted to get the gun once he saw it.Garcia was taken to the hospital where he died from a gunshot wound.
After shooting Garcia, Pacheco took off saying he was scared because he was on probation and was a convicted felon. He also told deputies he later removed his clothes and threw them into a dumpster. Pacheco gave his gun into detectives.
Pacheco is charged with Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, Violation of Probation and Tampering with Physical Evidence.
Photo courtesy Polk County Sheriff's Office