Tucson police didn't have to look far to find a first-degree murder suspect Thursday. He was already behind bars at the Pima County jail.
Jose Angel Alvarez was booked Wednesday for an unrelated gun offense on the city's west side on the same day of a killing on the east side, authorities said. He was later charged in connection with that slaying.
Alvarez, 29, is one of two men charged with murder in what police have described as a drug-related shooting at an east side hotel in the 6500 block of East Speedway.
Cassius Brandon Mason, 33, also faces a murder charge in Wednesday's hotel room killing of 34-year-old David Jimenez.
Police say Jimenez and others were meeting with other men for a drug-related transaction when gunfire erupted during an altercation.
Jimenez was struck and died a short time later at a hospital.
Alvarez was booked into jail Wednesday on a charge of misconduct with a weapon over an incident near West Grant and North Oracle roads. Detail of that incident were not available.
In addition to the murder charges, he and Mason are also facing charges of armed robbery, aggravated robbery, kidnapping and prohibited possession of a weapon.
