Who is Alex James Barnett? Everything to know about suspect in Tucson police recruit Carlos Ramirez killing
Authorities have identified Alex James Barnett as the suspect in the murder of Tucson police recruit Carlos Ramirez and are seeking the public’s help to track him down.
Who is Alex James Barnett?
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department issued a first-degree murder warrant for 33-year-old Alex James Barnett on Thursday night. Prison records show he has an extensive criminal history.
Arizona Department of Corrections records show Barnett has been sentenced to prison multiple times and was most recently released on November 18, 2025, after serving nearly a year for unlawful imprisonment. In that case, he was originally charged with aggravated assault too, but pleaded guilty to the unlawful imprisonment charge instead, according to court records.
Corrections department records also show Barnett was previously convicted of burglary, theft, identity theft, weapons misconduct, auto theft, child or adult abuse, and solicitation of dangerous drugs, among other crimes. Of the 12 cases listed against him since 2010, 11 are from Pima County and one is from Yuma County, as per Tucson.com.
Barnett is described as bald with distinctive arm tattoos. He was last seen wearing a red shirt and black leather vest while riding a maroon 2020 Harley-Davidson FLHX-S motorcycle with Arizona license plate DA466. He is considered armed and dangerous, as per Fox 10.
What happened to Carlos Ramirez?
Carlos Ramirez, 23, was a former Pima County corrections officer who was just days away from finishing the police academy and joining the Tucson Police Departmeny. He was shot and killed around 6am Wednesday inside the home he shared with his fiancee.
His fiancee, a 23-year-old Pima County corrections officer, who also works as a Pima County corrections officer, was shot and injured but is expected to survive. The couple lived in Tucson’s far southwest side, near Mountain Star Drive and Yedra Road. Their child was also inside the home when the shooting happened. No motive for the shooting has been shared so far.
Surveillance footage released
The Sheriff’s Department released two surveillance videos on Thursday night. One video, from a Shell gas station at 5405 W. Valencia Road near Casino del Sol, shows Barnett with “a second, unidentified suspect” around 5:20am. Wednesday, just minutes before the shooting took place in a nearby neighborhood.
The second video shows “a third, unidentified suspect” getting out of the vehicle believed to be linked to the shooting. That footage was recorded in a parking lot near South Palo Verde Road and East 33rd Street around 10:50am Wednesday.
The alleged getaway car, a gray 2007-2013 Acura MDX SUV, was found abandoned Thursday in a parking lot near South Palo Verde Road and East 33rd Street, south of East 29th Street, as per Fox 10.
