Break in 2013 Phoenix cold case murder

New tonight, a major break in a cold case that went unsolved for 13 years. Yeah, Phoenix police say that they have tracked down the man responsible for killing an unarmed security guard back in 2013. 59-year-old Jeffrey Belmar was shot and killed while working at his shift at a Maryvale apartment complex. Fox 10's Andrew Christensen joining us now with the details that finally led detectives to a suspect. Andrew. Yeah, Joe Gerardo is the 43-year-old man that the Phoenix Police Department says they arrested in Globe last week. He's the man accused of killing Jeffrey Belmar more than 10 years ago. And prosecutors in court made it very clear that he needs to be held accountable. The defendant does have a violent history. Even aside from this offense, he has gang affiliations. Notably, he also escaped responsibility for this offense for about 13 years. The state believes he is a flight risk, given the amount of time, prison time that he's facing. And back in November 2013, Jeffrey Belmar was working as a security guard at an apartment complex near Maryvale Parkway and McDowell Road when he was shot multiple times. Witnesses reported seeing a damaged getaway car with three people inside, and police circulated a sketch of the suspect, but leads quickly went cold. That changed this year when a new witness finally came forward. She told detectives she was a teenager living at the complex at the time and that she saw Gerardo with a gun minutes before. Before the shooting, asking about Belmar and saying he was going to, quote, handle him tonight. She later identified Gerardo in a photo lineup. To those suspects out there who think they got off the hook, you know, please don't think that. Because we're always going to be diligently looking for you. We're always going to be coming after you. Detectives confirmed Gerardo, a documented gang member known as Tweety, owned a matching 1993 Chrysler Imperial at the time of the murder. Now, Gerardo's motives still remain unclear. He's being held at the Maricopa County Jail on a $2 million cash only bond. Reporting in downtown Phoenix, Andrew Christensen, Fox 10 News. Andrew, thanks. And we reached out to Jeffrey Belmar's family today. The son tells us that they are grateful that detectives never gave up. And in a statement, he writes, I'm elated. We have the individual we believe is responsible for the murder of my father. We're still hoping for more answers and justice, but it's a huge step in the right direction.