Gunshot wounds were the cause of death. Despite the number of tips received, very few were of any use to the police. In November of 1984, the bodies of Thomas Cotton and Judy McKnight were found in the kitchen of their Lincoln County ranch house. Alternatively, call Crime Stoppers on 5755268000 or visit the website NMCrimestoppers.org. According to the same source, around 4,302 of those homicides have been solved as time passed, yet leaving roughly 2,277 homicides unsolved in New Mexico. Even after more than 30 years, law enforcement and family members of the victims hold out hope that the case can be closed and the culprits brought to justice. Cold Case Homicides Missing The sellers of the items earn money that they can reinvest in other Three of these victims survived their injuries, and four including two young children did not. Also the disappearance of young Robbie Romero from Santa Fe, circa 2000. what about the disappearance of Jimmy Mathews in February 2000. img5on=new Image(); img10on.src="../images/btn10_on.jpg"; Or, did he use the body of someone who had died in some other way? would like to email us. img5off.src="../images/btn5.jpg"; These include the 2004 murder of Joan Vance, the 1983 murder of Jean Simmons Abla, the 1981 murder of Mildred Reagan, and the 2008 double murder of Jessie Morales and Michelle Amy Phillips, along with others. we need to bring the criminals to justice. However, the rate of robberies in the state consistently remains below the national average. img5off=new Image(); Maria Raquel Grijalva went missing Aug. 3, 2014. Little did we know that we had barely scratched the surface of the world of mysteries in this intriguing state. // -->, New Mexico Survivors of Homicide, Inc., Your email address will not be published. Teran was the bowling alley's technician and had brought his daughters to work after being unable to find childcare for the day. } These offenders probably murdered before with how quickly they shot the hostages and left with the $. the memory of Gary James March. Several local, state, and even federal law enforcement organizations have published public annual crime reports on their websites, which detail the types and frequency of crimes in that area, if youre interested in learning more about crimes in New Mexico. Someone was angry with this bowling alley for some reason and wanted to get even. Things got out of hand inside the bowling alley and these guys apparently panicked and tried, unsuccessfully I might add, to eliminate all witnesses. Police suspected that someone murdered the two victims. To view all unsolved cases you may select one of the sorting View all cases sorted by city of I thought I had said something about this story awhile back and its not here so I guess I will just repeat what I mentioned about this story awhile ago. The motive of the massacre was robbery;about $5,000 was stolen. Annette Gutirrez-Millspaugh shared with us that nobody had ever solved the 1982 murder of Father Reynaldo Rivera. As a lawyer and politician, Fountain was not without enemies. The second gunman took $4,000 from the safe while the other gunman continued to yell, Heads down! Ida said she followed the instructions: When he said that, I thought, These guys are leaving. And thats when I felt they had shot me in the head.. Uncovered is where the most passionate true crime enthusiasts can learn from and teach others. Required fields are marked *. Its relatively unpopulated, and its home to all kinds of ultra-weird, ultra-interesting, or otherwise interesting-in-some-way mysteries. Last week, we looked at some of the biggest unsolved mysteries in New Mexico. [Bulletin Board] [Organization] Height: 510 What about the West Mesa Murders??? The location of his bodywas roughly three miles from where the unknown caller requested that heperform those last rights. No one has ever been charged in his death. Two-year-old Valerie Teran was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. img1off=new Image(); May 25, 2017 @ David Ray died in prison and his accomplice Cynthia Hendy is in prison currently at the SWCF in New Mexico awaiting release. myForm_OnSubmit = False Some examples of the numerous cases in which Santa Fe murders DNA or DNA from crimes in other parts of New Mexico was utilized to solve or bring new information to cold cases include the following: the 2018 murder of Robert Romero, the 1985 murder of Roger Dean, the 2002 murder of Sasha Hedgecock, and the 1980 murder of Viola Hagenkord, among many others. The first entry on this list of New Mexicos unsolved mysteries is among the most disturbing. Such samples could then be run against evidence from other open cases. The bowling alley was scheduled to open at 9 am for a youth bowling league the day of the murders. Several law enforcement agencies [8], In 2016, 26 years after the shooting, a brother of victim Steven Teran (who died in the shooting), Anthony Teran, was included in an issue of the Las Cruces Sun-News newspaper and one of his remarks was noted, "In this day and age, things like this dont go unsolved. img7on.src="../images/btn7_on.jpg"; 1960 EMsg = "Invalid date, Please enter a valid date in both the From and To date fields, or you may leave both blank." I wonder if she was ever found??? Approximately 4,302 of those murdershave sincebeen solved, yet there are currently approximately2,277 unsolved murders in New Mexico. To this day, nobody has solved the crime,and many questions still remain. into the stories you've heard before, and encounter many others you haven't, in ways that actually help. We can also pass One of the most prolific missing person cases in the United States involved 19 year old Tara Calico who was abducted while riding her bike in Belen, New Mexico, in September of 1988. theYear=theYear+1900 Though no one was ever changed with her murder many high level names were suggested. It was about 8:00 A.M. and just an hour before opening time. Dig deeper www.nmsoh.org email: webmistress@nmsoh.org, Web site design by LAS CRUCES, N.M. - The killers were ruthless. Again, any DNA around the safe or around anything the killers may have touched should be uploaded to GEDmatch.com and familial DNA could solve this quick. Articles, Entertainment, NM History, People A few of the most infamous New Mexico murders which currently remain unsolved include the 1990 Las Cruces Bowling Alley Massacre, in which 7 people were murdered by two unknown assailants, and the mass grave filled with the remains of 13 women and one unborn child in West Mesa, along with the 2006 disappearance of Shawntell Monique Waites and several others that you may recognize. In all, 11+ victims were found and identified over the following year. Las Cruces Bowl via New Mexico Police Department Shortly after 8 am, on the 10th of February 1990, police received a call from a distressed child, who claimed she'd been shot in the head. 7:05 am. What do you think about these mysteries? Their luggage was found east of Albuquerque and their car in Dallas, Texas. img3on=new Image(); Steve said they were both Hispanic, and at some point, police must have decided that Steves depiction of the men was correct as he wasnt under duress when he saw them, unlike Melissa. Else document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. The victims who survived multiple gunshot wounds and arson included 34 year old Stephanie Senac, her twelve year old daughter, Melissa Repass, and the bowling alley cook, Ida Holguin. He was found at milepost three on Highway 78, nearby the Arizona border. [9], A full-length documentary film called A Nightmare in Las Cruces[10] was released on the 20th anniversary of the massacre. DOB: Approx. Brian is right, those two men are long dead. Unsolved Mysteries - Bowling Alley Murder. cases remain unsolved, the murderers are walking the The answer is that they knew they could get away with it. Silver City, New Mexico. The girl was one of seven whod been attacked at Las Cruces Bowl that morning and the motive appeared to be money, but was that all? function imgOn(imgName) { Las Cruces Danessa Howard: 8/10/1984 Albuquerque Matthew S. Hunt: 5/29/1999 . As Mary Olberg and Sandy Broadbentbrought to our attention, 58 year old Albert Jennings Fountain disappeared from the White Sands in Doa Ana County, New Mexico Territory. Seven people, including four children, had been shot in the head execution-style, and a fire had been set in the bowling alley's office. However, when a horrific crime remains unsolved, it compounds the pain for the victims families and leaves us with lots of questions. img7on=new Image();