A road rage incident along Interstate 40 in Albuquerque, New Mexico took a horrifying turn on Tuesday when a man fired into a moving car and killed a four-year-old girl. Police took a man matching the coward’s description into custody hours after releasing his description.
On Tuesday afternoon, a red Toyota sedan tried to pass a red truck driven by Alan Garcia while traveling westbound on I-40, but the truck wouldn’t let the sedan change lanes. At around 3 p.m., the Toyota pulled alongside the truck, and the sedan’s driver started raking the truck with bullets.
Miraculously, none of the bullets hit Garcia or his wife, Veronica. However, four-year-old Illiana Rose Rael “Lilly” Garcia was hit several times in the head. She was pronounced dead later that afternoon at University of New Mexico Hospital. The westbound lanes of I-40 were closed for almost six hours, snarling traffic throughout Albuquerque.
Jonelle Tafoya was driving behind the incident when it happened. She told KOB in Albuquerque that the Garcias’ truck “kept swerving from lane to lane” to stay in front of the Toyota. Tafoya pulled off the Interstate lest she get swept up in an accident. When she heard that a child had been shot in the head on I-40, she realized she had actually seen the incident that led up to the shooting.
Needless to say, Albuquerque police were hopping mad. Police chief Gordon Eden called Lilly’s death “a complete disrespect of human life” that was “100 percent preventable.” Police offered a $1,000 reward for any information leading to this coward’s arrest. The Albuquerque City Council threw in an additional $20,000.
Lilly’s aunt, Patty Romero, has started a GoFundMe page to pay for Lilly’s funeral expenses. Click here to contribute. As of Wednesday night, it has raised over $43,000 from across New Mexico and around the world. The family was originally looking to only raise $10,000. A local funeral home has offered to host Lilly’s funeral for free.
Earlier today, police released a description of the guy believed to be responsible for Lilly’s death, as well as that of the car. The shooter was described as a dark-complexioned white or Latino man in his mid-20s to early 30s with short dark hair and a goatee. He was driving a “sportier” Camry or Corolla with a spoiler and tinted windows. It was believed to be sporting a New Mexico Lobos logo and the number “200.” If and when he is captured, he faces charges of murder, attempted murder, and shooting into a vehicle, among others–charges that could potentially send him to prison for life.
The FBI is also on the case–which isn’t surprising, considering that the coward could have potentially escaped to Arizona, Texas, Colorado or even Mexico. However, it’s possible that the guy was dumb enough to stay in New Mexico. Just hours after the release of the suspect’s description, police got a tip that a man fitting the suspect’s description was driving a green Lexus in Albuquerque’s Westgate neighborhood. He was taken into custody without incident. Police are working to obtain warrants for his house and the Lexus, and believe the Toyota may be in the garage.
Until it is confirmed that this is the guy, everyone in New Mexico, as well as in Arizona, Texas, and Colorado, needs to be on the lookout. Whoever did this is a monster. Period.
