Adan Junior Pena III
(PCSD file photo)
By Patti Weaver
STILLWATER — A Ponca City teenager accused of shooting a customer in the parking lot of a 7-11 convenience store at 711 N. Main Street in Stillwater at about 12:28 am on March 2 has been ordered held in the Payne County Jail on $1,000,000 bail pending an April 7 court appearance at which he can seek a preliminary hearing.
If convicted of assault and battery with a deadly weapon as well as being a convicted felon in possession of a 9mm handgun, Adan Junior Pena III, 18, could be given two life prison sentences, court records show.
At the time of the shooting, Pena was on 20 years’ probation for kidnapping and first-degree burglary, along with two concurrent 10 years of probation for two separate convictions of possessing a firearm after adjudication as a delinquent child, all in Kay County in 2024, court records show.
On surveillance video from the 7-11 store in Stillwater, Pena and the victim, identified as Victor Gutierrez, are observed talking to each other, both inside and then outside the store in the parking lot before they are seen reaching towards their waistbands, Stillwater Police Detective David Adney alleged in an affidavit. The actual shooting was apparently not visible on video.
“Victor makes it to the rear of the store before collapsing,” on the ground with a gunshot to his lower right abdomen, the affidavit alleged. The victim was transported to the Stillwater Medical Center before being airlifted to OU Medical Center, a police news release said.
“Officer R. Simpson advised me he had been conducting a traffic stop on the south side of the store when he heard a gunshot coming from the west side of the building in front of the store. Officer Simpson responded towards the gunshot and observed a dark-colored SUV with an Oklahoma personalized Thunder tag driving north away from the gas pumps.
“Officer R. Simpson returned to his patrol car and attempted to follow the SUV when he was flagged down by a bystander on the east side of the store,” where the shooting victim was found on the ground, the detective alleged in his affidavit.
“Simultaneously, Officers Mobus, Sexton and White executed a high-risk traffic stop on the SUV that fled the scene and placed five people in investigative detention. The SUV contained one adult identified as Noah Stoddard,” the affidavit alleged. There were also three male juveniles and one female juvenile in the SUV, the affidavit said.
Stoddard, 22, of Ponca City, the driver, was arrested at 12:35 am on March 2 at 1200 E. Wilham Drive, according to an affidavit by Stillwater Police Officer Ryan Sexton. Stoddard, who is on 15 years’ probation for false personation and third-degree burglary in Kay County, was jailed on $75,000 bail pending an April 7 court appearance on a charge of being a felon in possession of a Glock 19x semi-automatic CO2 powered BB gun, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison on conviction.
“Review of the surveillance video shows a dark grey 2002 Chevrolet Tahoe pulling into gas pump #7 facing east towards the store. Five males exit the vehicle and enter the store,” including Pena, who was wearing a black Nike hoodie, stone-washed jeans, white tennis shoes and a green Bass Pro Shop ball cap, the affidavit alleged.
“At approximately 12:16 am a 2003 Chevrolet truck pulls into the gas pump #8 and faces west. Two males, identified as Juan ‘Diego’ Gutierrez and the shooting victim, Victor Gutierrez, exit the truck and enter the store,” where video shows Pena and victim talking with each other for several minutes before Pena leaves the store, the affidavit alleged.
“Victor and Adan stood outside and talked with each other for several more minutes while Diego went to pump gas. On video you can see Adan and Victor reaching towards their waistbands. Both men then walk towards Victor’s truck. Victor and Adan stand between the gas pump and the inside driver’s door of the truck.
“After several minutes, (two male juveniles) exit the rear passenger door of the SUV. (One) runs around the rear of the vehicle and towards Victor and Adan while (the other) stays by the SUV. A few seconds later (the third male juvenile) exits the SUV and sprints towards the truck. From one angle, you can see Victor is backed into the doorway of his truck by all three men.
“(The third male juvenile) and Victor push each other, and Victor moves towards the back of the truck. (That male juvenile) follows him. (He) reaches for Victor, who then raises his shirt up presumably to show he doesn’t have a weapon. Victor then walks around to the passenger side of the truck.
“Two juvenile females exit the passenger side of the truck and start east towards the store. Victor walks to the passenger side door, while a male juvenile is exiting the truck. Aden is leaning inside the truck through the driver’s door. Victor and (the male juvenile) turn and start to walk behind the girls, then you see everyone run in different directions.
“Victor makes it to the rear of the store before collapsing. Adan jumps into the rear passenger side of the SUV, and it pulls away headed north out of the parking lot, then turns east on McElroy. In a different camera angle, you can see the SUV stop in the 100 block of E. McElroy, and see Adan run north from the SUV,” the affidavit alleged. Adan Pena was arrested the next day with the assistance of the Ponca City Police Department, the news release said.
“During an interview with Sgt. Merrill, (a juvenile girl) stated, ‘the man in the green hat with a black Nike hoodie pointed a gun at me’ while she was inside the Chevrolet truck during the altercation. Detective Droescher recovered a 9mm shell casing from the driver’s side rear window ledge of the truck. Victor was shot with a 9mm.
“I interviewed all the occupants of the SUV. (One juvenile girl) stated Adan had a gun. (A juvenile male) stated he saw Adan with a gun earlier in the night, and they kicked Adan out of the SUV after the shooting because they didn’t want him in the car. (Another juvenile male) stated Adan had a gun, and he believes he was responsible for shooting the guy he was arguing with, but denied seeing the shooting,” the detective alleged in his affidavit.
