Man in trouble for allegedly shooting man he was paying with meth for pooing in his yard

Sheriff's deputies say a man from South Valley, New Mexico, went too far when he hauled out a pistol and pulled the trigger after catching a man he was paying with meth using his yard as a toilet.

Ruben Rodriguez has now been charged with three felonies that could put him in prison for years if he's convicted. He is charged with aggravated assault, aggravated battery causing great bodily harm and kidnapping. Metro Court Judge Rosemary Cosgrove-Aguilar set a $5,000 cash or surety bond for him on Thursday and mandated he not use firearms, drugs or alcohol.



Deputies found a man, identified as Hugo Duarte Mendez, lying beside a road in the dirt with a gunshot wound to his left knee. Mendez told deputies he was working for a man down the road, Rodriguez, when the man shot him. Mendez said Rodriguez was paying him for the yardwork with meth.

He also told deputies that he asked Rodriguez to use his bathroom while doing the work, but Rodriguez wouldn't let him inside. So instead, Mendez opted to defecate in the yard instead, which is when Rodriguez allegedly grabbed the gun and shot Mendez in the knee. He said Rodriguez then loaded him in the back of a pick-up truck, drove him down the road and dumped him in the dirt. If convicted, Rodriguez faces up to 24 years in prison for the incident.

With news video.