Gilbert man accused of killing teen, charged with sex crimes

A Gilbert man accused of second-degree murder has been charged with sexual exploitation involving a minor, the Maricopa County Prosecutor’s Office announced Monday.

The Maricopa County Prosecutor’s Office alleged that Joe Rim, 21, committed sex crimes against a minor under the age of 15 on the same day he was murdered. arrested for the second time.

On October 22, Rim was charged with ten crimes related to the sexual exploitation of a minor committed on January 19. Details about the accusation were not available.

In January, Rim was charged with first-degree murder of 18-year-old Stephen Jacobo, who was shot dead during a gathering celebrating his birthday on November 6, 2022.

Rim, then 20, was arrested in the days after the shooting but was never charged. The MCAO returned the case to the Mesa Police Department for further investigation.

Rim was arrested again early this year after two additional witnesses led police to him, court documents show.

The facts: Mesa teen murdered the day after his 18th birthday. A Gilbert man has been charged with murder

According to court records, prior to the shooting, Rim was convicted of aggravated assault, aggravated assault on law enforcement officers, assault, aggravated robbery, theft, criminal damage and disorderly conduct.

He is being held in the Maricopa County Jail on a $900,000 bond. His next court date for both cases is scheduled for December 3.

What happened to Stefan Jacobo?

According to court documents, Jacobo was shot at a party in the early morning of November 6, 2022.

A witness told police she saw Jacobo talking to Rim, gesturing to the gun in Rim’s waistband. The two then got into a fight that led to Rim allegedly shooting Jacobo in the neck, according to court documents.

Another witness, who was not in the room at the time of the shooting, woke up to the sound of gunshots and reportedly asked who shot Jacobo. Rim responded that he did, but “don’t call the police,” according to court documents.

Rim fled but was apprehended after two witnesses identified his driver’s license photo, according to court documents.

Five other witness statements confirmed the events, two of which occurred eight months after the incident.

These last two witnesses led the police to accuse Rim of shooting Jacobo.