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The man accused of killing a 52-year-old during a shooting at a Phoenix gas station previously faced a weapons-related charge, court records show.
Deondre Stephon Franklin, 25, was charged in 2020 with carrying a deadly weapon while under the age of 21, along with an underage alcohol offense, according to Peoria Municipal Court records.
The case was later dismissed by prosecutors after Franklin complied with court-ordered conditions, including substance evaluation and education, records show. The case did not result in a conviction.
Franklin is now accused in a fatal shooting that police say unfolded during a routine morning stop at a QuikTrip gas station.
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Phoenix Police said 52-year-old Danny Lyn Kaster was shot and killed during a morning shooting at a QuikTrip in Phoenix on Jan. 16. Officers responded to reports of gunfire around 7:45 a.m. and found Kaster suffering from at least one gunshot wound.
Phoenix Fire Department crews transported Kaster to a hospital, where he later died from his injuries, police said.
Homicide detectives launched an investigation and were able to identify Franklin as the suspect. One day after the shooting, Franklin was arrested and booked on one count of murder, according to Phoenix Police Public Affairs Sgt. Rob Scherer.
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He is being held on a $1 million bond and is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 23, records show. The investigation remains active.
Authorities have not released details about a possible motive or whether the two men knew each other prior to the encounter.
Kaster’s family told FOX 10 Phoenix the shooting stemmed from what they described as a seemingly ordinary interaction inside the gas station.
According to family members, Kaster was waiting in line to use the bathroom when Franklin allegedly attempted to cut in front of him. When Kaster intervened, the family said, Franklin shot him.
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“He was killed in the most ordinary interaction,” family members told the station, adding that “it could have been anyone.”
Kaster was taken to the hospital following the shooting but died shortly afterward, his family said.
Loved ones told FOX 10 Phoenix they now want the world to know who Kaster was beyond the circumstances of his death, describing him as a special person whose life was taken far too soon.
Police have not said whether surveillance video captured the shooting or whether a weapon has been recovered.
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Investigators are urging anyone with information about the shooting to contact Silent Witness.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Arizona Department of Corrections for comment.
Stepheny Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and migrant crime. Send story tips to [email protected].
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