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OGDEN — A man who turned 18 two months ago was charged Wednesday with murder for the shooting death of another man outside an Ogden convenience store.
Thomas "TJ" Lovato, of Ogden, was charged in 2nd District Court with murder, a first-degree felony; two counts of attempted murder, a first-degree felony; obstructing justice, a second-degree felony; and reckless endangerment, a class A misdemeanor.
Lovato is accused of shooting Ernest Pepe Martinez, 32, of Ogden, in the parking lot of SNS Quick Stop, 110 Patterson, on Sunday. Police found Martinez's body inside a vehicle, according to charging documents.
According to prosecutors, Lovato fired numerous rounds into Martinez's vehicle, narrowly missing two other occupants. Some of the shots hit a nearby house that was also occupied, the charges state. No one in the house was injured.
After the shooting, Ogden police released still photos from the store surveillance video that recorded Lovato with a gun in his hand. Investigators received numerous tips from the public after the images were released, naming Lovato as the suspect.
Police started monitoring Lovato's Facebook page and viewed "numerous photos and/or video of Thomas in possession of firearms and shooting firearms. Additionally, there are photos of Thomas wearing what appears to be the same jacket and hat as the suspect in the aforementioned surveillance video," the charges state.
Related:
Ogden police make arrest in fatal shooting
Police have arrested a man in connection with the shooting death of another man early Sunday outside a convenience store.While detectives were monitoring his Facebook page, Lovato changed his profile name, according to charging documents.
"A short time later, someone on this same Facebook profile began deleting the aforementioned photos and posts. A short time after that, the Facebook profile was deleted," the charges state.
On Sunday, police served a search warrant at Lovato's home and found a gun "that matches the description of the gun seen in the surveillance video," according to charging documents.
Early Monday, just before 12:30 a.m., officers spotted Lovato walking along Washington Boulevard. Hew as wearing a wig at the time, the charges state. He was arrested following a short foot chase.
"Thomas told your affiant that he had acted in self-defense. However his explanation of the incident contradicted physical evidence recovered at the scene that makes a self-defense claim unlikely. Thomas admitted to fleeing from the scene following the shooting, and to hiding the handgun used in the shooting at his residence," according to court documents.
