‘Rust’ shooting: Armorer charged with evidence tampering

The armorer who is facing a single charge of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the deadly on-set shooting during the filming of the movie “Rust” is now facing an additional charge.

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Hannah Gutierrez-Reed is now accused of evidence tampering, The Associated Press reported.

Prosecutors said she “did transfer narcotics to another person with the intent to prevent the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of herself,” in a court filing in Santa Fe County, New Mexico.

Gutierrez-Reed’s attorney called the additional charges “retaliatory and vindictive,” the AP reported.

[ ‘Rust’ shooting: Judge approves settlement in wrongful death lawsuit ]

“Something is rotten in Denmark. It is shocking that after 20 months of investigation, the special prosecutor now throws in a completely new charge against Ms. Gutierrez-Reed, with no prior notice or any witness statements, lab reports, or evidence to support it. This comes on the heels of the state letting its lead investigator go, and the investigator raising serious concerns about the investigation in an email. This stinks to high heaven and is retaliatory and vindictive,” defense attorney Jason Bowles told Entertainment Tonight.

Involuntary manslaughter charges were dropped in April against actor and producer Alec Baldwin who pointed a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal for “Rust.” the gun went off and killed Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza. The shooting happened on Oct. 21, 2021.

[ ‘Rust’ shooting: Alec Baldwin attorney says gun used in ‘Rust’ shooting was ‘destroyed’ ]

Guiterrez-Reed is now the only person charged in relation to the shooting but charges could be refiled against Baldwin.

[ ‘Rust’ shooting: Charges against Alec Baldwin dropped ]

Last week, prosecutors alleged Guiterrez-Reed drank and smoked marijuana during the evenings of the “Rust” shooting schedule and was likely hungover the day of the incident when a live round was mistakenly put into the gun used by Baldwin the AP reported.

[ ‘Rust’ shooting: Armorer likely hungover when she loaded gun, prosecutors say ]

Reuters reported that Guitterez-Reed admitted during a police interview to loading the live round by mistake.

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office responds to the scene of a fatal accidental shooting at a Bonanza Creek Ranch movie set near Santa Fe, N.M., on Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021. Authorities say a cinematographer has been killed and a director injured Thursday after they were shot by a prop firearm on the "Rust" movie set. (Luis Sanchez-Saturno//Santa Fe New Mexican via AP)

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say This aerial video image provided by KOAT 7 News shows the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office responding to the scene of a fatal accidental shooting at a Bonanza Creek Ranch movie set near Santa Fe, N.M., on Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021. Authorities say a cinematographer has been killed and a director injured Thursday after they were shot by a prop firearm on the "Rust" movie set. (KOAT 7 News via AP)

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say An exterior view shows a lighted 'emergency' sign near the emergency entrance to Christus St. Vincent Medical Center, where "Rust" director Joel Souza was transported, on October 21, 2021, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Souza was injured and director of photography Halyna Hutchins was killed on set while filming the movie "Rust" at Bonanza Creek Ranch on Thursday. The film's star and producer, Alec Baldwin, discharged a prop firearm that hit Hutchins and Souza, authorities said. (Sam Wasson/Getty Images)

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say An exterior view shows the entrance to Christus St. Vincent Medical Center, where "Rust" director Joel Souza was transported, on October 21, 2021, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Souza was injured and director of photography Halyna Hutchins was killed on set while filming the movie "Rust" at Bonanza Creek Ranch on Thursday. The film's star and producer, Alec Baldwin, discharged a prop firearm that hit Hutchins and Souza, authorities said. (Sam Wasson/Getty Images)

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say An exterior view shows a sign directing patients to the emergency entrance to Christus St. Vincent Medical Center, where "Rust" director Joel Souza was transported, on October 21, 2021, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Souza was injured and director of photography Halyna Hutchins was killed on set while filming the movie "Rust" at Bonanza Creek Ranch on Thursday. The film's star and producer, Alec Baldwin, discharged a prop firearm that hit Hutchins and Souza, authorities said. (Sam Wasson/Getty Images)

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say Authorities identified the slain victim as Halyna Hutchins, a 42-year-old cinematographer, The Associated Press reported. She is shown here in a 2019 file photo. (Fred Hayes/Getty Images for SAGindie)

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say The film’s director, 48-year-old Joel Souza, was taken to a nearby hospital and treated for injuries, officials said. He is shown here in a 2019 file photo. (Jim Spellman/Getty Images)

Photos: Alec Baldwin fired 'prop gun' that killed 'Rust' cinematographer, officials say In this Sept. 21, 2015, file photo, actor Alec Baldwin attends a news conference at United Nations headquarters. A prop firearm discharged by Baldwin, who is starring and producing a Western movie, killed his director of photography and injured the director Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021, at the movie set outside Santa Fe, N.M., the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office said. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)