An arrest has been made in the November 22, 2013, homicide that was discovered in the Santa Cruz River near Riverside Drive and West Saint Mary’s Road. The victim in this incident was identified as 34-year-old Owen McNutt.
On November 23, 2013, detectives determined this incident was a homicide following an autopsy. At least one of the individuals involved in the incident had previous documented gang affiliation, and the case was then taken over by the Tucson Police Gang Unit.
Gang Detectives later determined that the incident was not a gang related crime. Detectives discovered that the two suspects were known to Mr. McNutt. All three were homeless and lived in the area of the incident. The two suspects lured Mr. McNutt into the wash, where he was assaulted and robbed of his personal belongings. During the course of the robbery, Mr. Mcnutt was killed. The cause of death was determined to be blunt force trauma. Detectives were able to positively identify one of the suspects in this incident as 36-year-old Shane Blevins.
On February 18, 2014, detectives located Blevins at the Pima County Jail, where he was being held for unrelated charges.
Detectives added the following to his current charges:
1 count of 1st Degree Murder
1 count of Felony Murder 1st degree
1 count of Armed Robbery and
1 count of Aggravated Robbery
Detectives are actively seeking the second suspect, who has been identified in this incident.