OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
6:10 PM – Monday, December 16, 2024
According to authorities in New Mexico, a 16-year-old boy has been arrested after purportedly fatally shooting his entire family while “extremely intoxicated.”
16-year-old Diego Leyva has now been charged with first-degree murder after he purportedly shot and killed his family early on Sunday morning before calling 9-1-1 and turning himself in.
Officials say that Leyva “told a dispatcher he had killed his family.”
At around 3:30 in the morning on Sunday, the shooting happened in Belén, in Valencia County, New Mexico.
According to a statement from New Mexico police officers, Leyva walked outside with his hands up and was “extremely intoxicated” when officers arrived on the scene.
“Diego walked out of the residence with his hands in the air and was extremely intoxicated. He was taken into custody without incident,” police said in the statement.
Officers discovered a firearm on the kitchen table and four deceased victims inside the residence. The deceased were his two brothers, ages 17 and 14, his mother, Adriana Bencomo, 35, and father, Leonardo Leyva, 42.
According to police, Leyva has been booked into an Albuquerque juvenile justice center and is now facing four counts of first-degree murder.
In a Facebook post, the Valencia County Fire Department stated that Adriana Bencomo, one of the four individuals discovered deceased on Sunday, was a local volunteer firefighter.
“Our brothers and sisters at RCFD are shocked and saddened by this loss as expected. The Valencia County Fire Department and Belen Fire Department have brought in additional staffing to assist with calls in Rio Communities, and the VCFD peer support team has been activated to assist members with this loss,” the statement said.
Interviews and scene processing are being conducted by agents from the NMSP Investigations Bureau and Crime Scene Team. It is unclear what the shooter’s motive was.
Once the investigation is finished, the case will be referred to the district attorney’s office for prosecution.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
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