Arizona man accused of fatally shooting boss over paycheck dispute

PHOENIX — An Arizona man is accused of fatally shooting his boss on Wednesday after a pay dispute stemming from some missing items, authorities said.

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Daniel Gordon Sr., 51, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and possession of a prohibited weapon, according to Maricopa County online court records.

Gordon is accused of shooting Dariusz Pawel Swiader, 47, The Arizona Republic reported. Gordon told police that he shot Swiader and placed the gun on top of the semi-truck he had been driving, according to the newspaper.

Swiader was found dead with two gunshot wounds to his head, KPNX-TV reported.

Swiader owned DSS Transport LLC, a trucking business. Gordon had been driving for them for months, but Dariusz Swiader was planning to let him go, his wife told the television station.

“It was just like a buildup of things he wasn’t following, directions and protocols of the company,” Stacy Swiader told KPNX.

According to surveillance video from a nearby business, Swiader drove to an apartment complex at about 1:50 p.m. and handed Gordon his possessions, the Republic reported. The two men talked for approximately six minutes before Swiader returned to his vehicle, according to the newspaper.

Police said Gordon pulled out a gun, and when Swiader attempted to open his vehicle’s door he was shot multiple times.

Gordon said Swiader had accused him of damaging the semi-truck and stealing several items, including a GPS device, according to the newspaper. That led to the shooting, police said.

“For $700, it’s ridiculous,” Stacy Swiader, the victim’s wife, told KPNX. “That was the value of the items he had to return in order to get his $2,000 paycheck.”

Dariusz’s family members said they were “heartbroken” by his death.

“Why’d it have to be you?” his ex-wife, Janelle Swiader, told KNXV-TV. “People don’t see that not everybody gets to heal from a gunshot wound, and death is final.”

Gordon was arrested and bail was set at $250,000, online records show.

Dariusz’s family has set up a GoFundMe account to help with funeral expenses.