LAS CRUCES (AP) – A 20-year-old man and three teens have been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with a shooting at a park in Las Cruces, New Mexico, that left three people dead and 15 others hurt, authorities said.
Tomas Rivas and a 17-year-old male were taken into custody on Saturday and a second 17-year-old male and a 15-year-old male were arrested yesterday, according to a statement from the city of Las Cruces. Each could face a murder charge and additional charges were pending, the statement said.
It wasn’t known yesterday if the defendants had attorneys. A message was sent to the public defender’s office in Dona Ana County inquiring whether its attorneys were representing them.
Gunfire erupted shortly around 10pm on Friday at Young Park, where an altercation broke out after an unauthorised car show had drawn about 200 people to the park in the desert city, police said.
Nine male and six female gunshot victims ranging in age from 16 to 36 were treated there or taken to hospitals.
Andrew Madrid, 16, and Jason Gomez, 18, died at the scene and Dominick Estrada, 19, died later at a hospital, according to the city statement. Authorities were seeking video from the park and tips from those present as the investigation continued.
Officials said the police and fire departments, along with community groups, would provide support for victims and their family members from yesterday through today at the Las Cruces Convention Center.
“Crisis counselling, spiritual counselling and connecting victims with local resources and financial assistance will be provided,” the city statement said. “Anybody impacted by this tragedy is encouraged to attend.”
Between 50 and 60 handgun casings were scattered across a wide swath of the park, Police Chief Jeremy Story said on Saturday, suggesting there were multiple shooters and multiple weapons.
Fire Chief Michael Daniels said 11 patients were sent to three local hospitals or the regional trauma centre, University Medical Center of El Paso. As of Saturday, he said, seven victims were in El Paso, four had been treated and released and the conditions of the other four were not known.
Local police were being assisted by New Mexico State Police, the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Story acknowledged that illegal car shows at Young Park are not uncommon and that the police presence has been larger in the past.
Understaffing on Friday, he said, meant he had “no units available for most of the night.”
United States Representative Gabe Vasquez, who represents the district where the shooting occurred, said he hopes local authorities can work together to support the car community and improve public security in the park.
“Because clearly, what we saw at Young Park was a chaotic event, a lawless event, where folks were not only in danger from firearms, but people were in danger from being run over from the cars that were spinning out in the parking lot,” Vasquez said during a news conference on Sunday.
