KINGMAN, Ariz. – More than a decade-long prison term is stipulated in a plea agreement entered by a man in an attempted murder case who has lived in the Bullhead City and Laughlin area. The deal proposed for Gilberto Mendez, 23, was unveiled on Aug. 21 at the Mohave County Law and Justice Center in Kingman.
Bullhead City Police Department Public Information Officer Emily Fromelt said a 33-year-old man suffered gunshots to both legs and an arm after two masked gunmen entered a residence in the 700 block of River Gardens Drive at 5:20 a.m. on Feb. 12. She said an altercation preceding the gunfire occurred because of “previous interactions” among unidentified parties.
The intruders fled before police arrived and Mendez was identified through investigation and taken into custody three weeks later.
Part of the proposed plea deal dismisses attempted murder and other charges in exchange for convictions for two counts of aggravated assault. Deputy Mohave County Attorney Leah Nelson said one count involves the gunshot victim and the other a woman who was threatened at gunpoint.
Mendez also pleaded guilty to aggravated assault upon a first responder for shoving an officer during his March 5 arrest in Lake Havasu City.
Mendez would serve 11 years in the Arizona Department of Corrections for the first case, followed by probation for the resisting arrest shove incident during which the officer was not injured. Sentencing is scheduled Sept. 28.
