Father Shot Dead While Looking At Christmas Lights With Family

A father of two was fatally shot while looking at Christmas lights with his family in Phoenix, Arizona, police have said. A 19-year-old man has been charged with his murder.

Eduardo Uzueta, 28, had been driving near the city's Sunridge Park with his girlfriend and their young children when he was shot on December 8. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he died of his injuries.

Isaiah Joshua Nash, 19, was arrested by Phoenix police on Friday, December 16, and has since been charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of armed robbery.

There have been 26 fatal shootings in Phoenix since the start of November, according to the Gun Violence Archive. Uzueta's killing was one of three gun deaths that took place on December 8.

Uzueta's girlfriend dialled 911 and Phoenix officers were dispatched to Sunridge Park, near 63rd Avenue and Roosevelt Street, according to CBS 5. They found a gun, shell casings, a rifle, a cellphone, and blood on McKinley Street, just south of the park.

The woman reportedly told police that the family had been looking at Christmas lights when they passed a car with several men standing around it.

Court documents obtained by the network said Uzueta had got into a fight with the group when he stepped out of his car to smoke.

The woman reportedly heard several gunshots and Uzueta walked back to the car and said he had been shot. They drove to a family member's home nearby and called the police.

The court documents also said the woman had told officers Uzueta "did nothing to provoke" the group of men.

Nash and three other men were arrested after police searched the cellphone that had been found at the scene.

Investigators alleged that texts sent between the group's members showed they had planned to rob someone and steal their car.

One of the three unnamed men allegedly told police officers that Nash had pistolwhipped Uzueta and shot him several times, according to court documents.

Newsweek has contacted the Phoenix Police Department for comment.

In September, a father was shot dead during an argument at an engagement party he attended with his wife and children in a Los Angeles suburb.

The Los Angeles Police Department said Edgar Rodrigues, 29, got into an altercation outside a large banquet hall in Northridge and was shot dead.

He was found to have been shot in the upper body several times with a handgun.