Teenager charged in Albuquerque senior death faces robbery charges
The Albuquerque Police Department is charging a 16-year-old for an armed robbery a month before the house party shooting death of 18-year-old Albuquerque Academy senior Jada Gonzales.
The new charges stem from a robbery attempt in November of last year. A female reported an armed robbery that left her tires damaged from gunshots on 188th Street and Gayle Lane Southwest.
She told police that two males approached her vehicle and ordered her to get out, also saying they kicked and struck her with a firearm. A female from the offenders attempted to steal the vehicle before getting into an altercation with the driver.
The victim also told police the men asked her if this was how she wanted to die. As the group fled, gunshots damaged the back windshield along with the tires.
Video taken by the victim helped assist APD in its investigation. In February, APD's digital intelligence unit was able to identify the two males and female in the video. Investigators said the group had been linked to multiple violent crimes, including the party shooting death of 18-year-old Gonzales.
The teenager has now been charged in both incidents and remains in jail pending the murder trial in the death of Gonzales. She had one year remaining at Albuquerque Academy before graduation.
It is not known if the other two individuals involved were charged in the armed robbery in November.