According to authorities, a youngster who claimed to have killed four family members at a house in New Mexico on Saturday was imprisoned on murder charges.
According to New Mexico State Police, the 16-year-old reported the killings to 911 at 3:32 a.m. near the little town of Belen, which is located 33 miles south of Albuquerque.
According to authorities, the adolescent, who was “extremely intoxicated,” fled a home and offered his hands in surrender to deputies who arrived.
According to investigators, they discovered a firearm on the kitchen table and four deceased persons inside.
The teenager’s and the victims’ identities were made public by state police, but NBC News usually doesn’t identify minors who are charged with crimes.
The four fatalities were ages 42, 35, 17, and 14. Although authorities did not immediately know their relationship to the suspect, they claimed that he “told a dispatcher he had killed his family.”
State police changed the age of one victim, who had been listed as 16 years old, to 17 on Monday.
No other details, including a potential motivation, were disclosed by the authorities.
“New Mexico State Police Investigations Bureau agents and Crime Scene Team are processing the scene and conducting interviews to learn what led up to these tragic events,” the police department stated.
According to authorities, the adolescent suspect was “medically cleared” at a hospital and scheduled to appear at the Juvenile Justice Center in Albuquerque early on Sunday.
According to authorities, the man was charged with four charges of first-degree murder.
According to Jessica Martinez, the chief deputy district attorney for the judicial district that includes Belen, the 16-year-old is likely to face adult charges because New Mexico law permits first-degree murder charges against defendants between the ages of 16 and 17 to be tried in open criminal court without the use of red tape.
Whether the suspect has legal representation was not immediately apparent. A request for comment was not immediately answered by Albuquerque-based public defenders.
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