Suspect in gun shop theft tied to murder near Route 66 Casino – KRQE News 13

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) A murder suspect is behind bars after a crime spree of stealing cars and guns. Now, police say theyre looking for his accomplice. Police say Erick Garcias crime spree started Sept. 10 when a group of crooks rammed their car into the Los Ranchos Gun Shop near Osuna and Fourth. From there, things only escalated.

We received a call from our alarm company, I did and my manager did, said Mark Abramson, owner of Los Ranchos Gun Shop. We got here right away and the police were already here, waiting for us to open so they could go in and inspect the premises.

Surveillance video shows the moment a group of crooks took an interesting approach to break into the gun shop before taking off with seven guns. It all happened around 4:30 a.m.

It appears they broke in through an adjacent space. They actually rammed a car into a wall, went into our neighbors unit, then broke through two walls, said Abramson. They left quite a mess.

Police now say one of those thieves, 22-year-old Erick Garcia, is involved in a murder that happened just two weeks after the break-in. According to court documents filed earlier on Friday, Garcia and an accomplice, Edgar Orona Camacho, killed a man who had car trouble, south of I-40 near the Route 66 Casino. According to the victims juvenile sister who was with him, Garcia and Orona Camacho helped jump Esteban Mercado-Rangels battery, before pulling out a gun and shooting him in the chest multiple times, then taking his car, forcing the young girl inside.

The sister who escaped later identified the suspects in a photo lineup. Police say after that, it wasnt hard to pin the suspects to the murder. A search warrant for Facebook messages shows the two walking about the moments before and after the deadly robbery.

This week, cops finally nabbed Garcia for a stolen car before connecting the dots to his month-long crime spree. Police say Orona Camacho is still on the run.

Were happy that one of these guys at least came off the streets. Itll be nice if they recover any of the firearms Were just not sure thats ever going to happen at this point, said Abramson. Putting seven guns on the streets is really the thing were most concerned about.

The Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office says its still too early to tell if any of the stolen guns from Los Ranchos were used in the murder. The state has filed a motion to keep Garcia in jail until trial.

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Suspect in gun shop theft tied to murder near Route 66 Casino - KRQE News 13