PHOENIX (CBS5) -
Police say they've arrested a Chandler man in connection with a fatal shooting of his 18-year-old ex-girlfriend early Saturday morning.
Chandler Police Sgt. Joe Favazzo says 18-year-old Eric Coulter was located with his brother and sister in a Mesa motel room around 6:45 p.m. Saturday.
Coulter was booked into jail for murder in the shooting death of his ex-girlfriend Monique Cota.
Friends describe Cota as a warm, freindly, energetic young woman who loved to laugh.
"The most genuine and kind person that you could meet," said Mackenzie Thurber, who worked with Cota at Fry's Marketplace in Ahwatukee. "She was beautiful. The inside was as beautiful as she was outside."
Coulter's sister and brother were also taken into custody. Police say they believe Coulter's sister, Melissa Smith attempted to tamper with evidence at the crime scene before police arrived. The suspect's brother, John Coulter, was found with marijuana and a forgery device.
Chandler police say Coulter ran from his home after his father was awoken by the sound of a gun shortly after 1 a.m. Saturday.
The father got up to find Monique Cota on the floor, dead from a gunshot wound.
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