Police: Collier teens were buying drugs when suspect shot, killed one

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COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. – A teen injured in a Golden Gate Estates shooting told authorities a drug deal gone bad was the motive behind the murder of 17-year-old Marcos Aleman.

Michael Stallone told deputies they were shot over drugs.

Witnesses are painting a graphic picture, telling deputies everything they say happened the night Aleman was killed.

According to the sheriff’s report, there were two other people in the truck with Meliton Cruz Jr. that night. The men rode with Cruz Jr. to 50th Avenue Northeast, a very remote section of Golden Gate Estates.

They waited while Cruz Jr. went to the other car, and then they heard screaming and gun shots.

Stallone was able to run for help. He told deputies they were there to buy weed and that’s when things turned deadly.

Deputies say Aleman was dead when they got on scene. He had two gallon sized bags of marijuana at his feet.

Stallone was able to give a description of their shooter and the truck he was in. When deputies tracked him down, they said Cruz Jr. had marijuana and a gun inside the truck.

Cruz Jr. had a detention hearing Friday morning. A judge decided he will be held at the Collier County Juvenile Detention Center for 21 days. The State Attorney’s Office will review the case and decide how he will be charged.

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