A 52-year-old Mesa man accused of the shooting death of a Texas Roadhouse employee has been charged with first-degree murder.
Eligio Millanes-Esquer was charged on Monday in the death of Daniel Gerardo Zamaro-Robles, an employee at the Texas Roadhouse, 5086 S. Power Road, Gilbert.
Zamaro-Robles, 26, also of Mesa, was dropping off a co-worker at her job about 8 a.m. on Saturday when Millanes-Esquer allegedly began shooting at him in the parking lot, according to police. Zamaro-Robles tried to hide in the kitchen of the restaurant, but Millanes-Esquer entered the building and shot him inside, according to police.
Zamaro-Robles, who was shot twice, died from a gunshot wound to the back, according to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner's Office.
Zamaro-Robles was pronounced dead at the scene, said Sgt. Bill Balafas, a Gilbert police spokesman.
Gilbert police believe that Zamaro-Robles was dating Millanes-Esquer's ex-wife.
Millanes-Esquer was arrested hours later without incident in Litchfied Park, police said.
Zamaro-Robles was a dishwasher at the restaurant where a manager there described him as a "great guy and great team member."
"It's very shocking," said Travis Doster a spokesman for Texas Roadhouse restaurants headquartered in Louisville, Ky. "It's a tough time. We've never had anything like this happen."
Doster said that Texas Roadhouse is helping Zamora-Robles' family with his funeral expenses through its employee outreach fund.
