Why was a Gilbert man killed? His family claims to know the motive
The two gunmen walked into the Gilbert air conditioning business and confronted the owners, one of whom was on a video call with his kids. That man was shot and killed. Both gunmen then fled, sparing the life of the other owner.
The gunmen might have had a motive to treat the second co-owner more gingerly. According to documents in a civil court case filed by the dead man's widow and his mother, the surviving owner hired the gunmen to kill his business partner.
The Gilbert Police Department has not made any arrests in the May 2020 murder of Nicholas Cordova, 40, the co-owner of Gilbert Air and a father of two.
But, according to filings in three civil cases, Gilbert police have investigated whether Cordova’s business partner, David Sweetman, was involved in the death.
One case, filed by an insurance company wondering to whom it might have to pay his death benefit, said Gilbert police called Sweetman a “person of interest” in the case.
The insurance case was settled, according to the federal court docket. The wrongful death case filed by Cordova's widow and mother was withdrawn. And a judge made a ruling in the third case, a child custody battle.
Sweetman did not return an email seeking comment or respond to a phone message left at his air-conditioning repair business, which has since changed names, nor did he return a message left on his personal phone. Attorneys who represented Sweetman also did not respond to requests for comment.
