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Second trial in case of real estate agent killing underway

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Posted at 1:44 PM, Jan 16, 2019
and last updated 2019-01-16 15:44:53-05

KINGMAN, Ariz. (AP) - The second trial of a man accused of killing an Arizona real estate agent is underway.

The Mohave Valley Daily News reports the trial of 62-year-old Alfredo Gerardo Blanco began Tuesday with jury selection.

Blanco is charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Kingman real estate agent Sidney Cranston Jr.

Blanco also is charged with tampering with physical evidence and concealing a dead body.

Cranston's body was found Jan. 7, 2017, about 18 months after his murder, buried on a remote property east of Kingman.

Blanco's attorney, Robin Puchek, blames the killing on William Sanders, who allegedly was present when Cranston was killed.

Sanders pleaded guilty to concealing a dead body and is awaiting his sentence. He could be sentenced to up to one year in county jail.

Blanco's first trial ended in a mistrial in September.