Man charged in fatal shooting of woman along West Central

A man is accused of shooting a woman in the head and stealing her purse Tuesday evening in a West Central neighborhood.

Noe Vega, 21, is charged with an open count of murder, robbery and tampering with evidence in the woman’s death.

Vega told police a man robbed him earlier in the day, and he then “did something unforgivable” — fatally shooting the woman, whom he believed was the man’s girlfriend, when he saw her walking down the street, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court.

Vega has been booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center.

A grand jury indicted Vega on March 26 with first-degree murder in the killing of Valerie Gabaldon, according to 2nd Judicial District Court records. Vega also is charged with armed robbery with a firearm and tampering with evidence, the indictment says.

Officers responded around 7:30 p.m. to a shooting in the 100 block of 57th, just north of Central. Police found a woman on the sidewalk with a bullet hole in her head and a 9mm bullet casing nearby.

A witness told police he heard the gunshot and looked outside to see a man take “a small, black bag” from the woman’s body and walk away, the complaint states. An officer in the area spotted the man leaving the neighborhood and detained him, identifying him as Vega.

Police said officers searched Vega, who matched the shooter’s description, and found a 9mm handgun with ammunition that matched the casing by the woman’s body.

During an interview, Vega told police he shot the woman, according to the complaint. Vega said he had been fired from Walmart earlier and picked up his gun to try and sell cannabis for some money.

Police said Vega told them a potential customer ran away with his drugs and money, leaving him “furious” about losing his job and being robbed. Vega said he then saw the girlfriend of the man who stole from him walking on 57th Street.

Vega told police he shot the woman and stole her bag “thinking it had his money in it” but it did not, the complaint states. He said he felt he couldn’t keep the woman’s money, and he gave it “to the homeless.”

“(Vega) knew he had done something unforgivable and wanted detectives to let his family and little brother know he was okay,” police said.