2nd arrest made in connection with teen's shooting death in 2020 at Phoenix gas station
PHOENIX - Nearly one year later after a 16-year-old was shot and killed, a second arrest has been made in the case.
The drive-by shooting happened in May 2020, outside a QT gas station in Phoenix, near 19th Avenue and Glendale. 19-year-old Jose Chovoyo is now accused of multiple felonies, including first-degree murder.
On special occasions, Sean Chinn's mother, Tifini Monegan, brings balloons and signs to the scene, while wearing the victim's picture proudly. She still remembers how senseless the shooting was.
"Now that there's been an arrest of the actual shooter involved in this case, I can feel like I can move forward," said Monegan.
On the day Chinn was shot, he walked across the street and met a couple of friends at the gas station. He didn't even get near the door when police say Emeterio Trujillo drove out of the parking lot, made a quick u-turn, and stopped in the middle turn lane before someone in the backseat opened fire on the teens. Sean's friends survived, but he did not.
Eight months before the shooting, Monegan moved her kids to Phoenix from Chicago to escape gun violence.
"It could have happened anywhere, so I don't fault the streets of Phoenix," said Monegan. "I don't fault Arizona for what happened to my son, 'cause this could have indeed happened at home."
A week after the shooting, police arrested Trujillo, who said the actual shooter fired because rocks were thrown at the car. On April 30, investigators served a search warrant at a Phoenix home for an unrelated crime. At the home, they found Chovoyo. Chavoyo is also accused of drive-by shooting and three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon
Monegan feels relief, but she is always missing her son.
"A lot. More than I could ever come up with the words to say," said Monegan.
Monegan says she will celebrate Mother's Day in 2021 for the first time without Sean.
"He's never missed one as long as he's been old enough to make a card or anything of that nature, and I just really feel like this is present to me," said Monegan.
On May 19, the anniversary of Sean's death, his family will walk together to the same gas station, and release 365 balloons in his memory.
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