Lorenzo Romero Shooting: Suspects, Charges, and Custody

The Lorenzo Romero shooting was the killing of an 18-year-old Albuquerque man at a Halloween party in the early hours of October 31, 2021. Nearly three years later, in the summer of 2024, two men were charged: Alexavier Gutierrez, identified by police as the shooter, and Ray Torres, identified as the driver of the vehicle the shots came from. Both were ordered held without bond pending trial.¹

What Happened at the Halloween Party

The shooting took place at a large party at the Valley View Villas apartment complex in the 3000 block of Transport Street SE, in southeast Albuquerque near I-25 and Sunport Boulevard. Albuquerque police responded to a shots-fired call at about 4:25 a.m. and found blood, shell casings, and a bullet-riddled Jeep in the street.¹

Video recovered by investigators showed Romero speaking with someone in the front passenger seat of a dark gray Jeep Grand Cherokee. Gunshots were then fired from inside the vehicle, and Romero fell to the ground.² Civilians at the scene drove him to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.³

Two other people were hurt in the chaos. One suffered a gunshot wound, and another was struck by a vehicle while trying to flee alongside cars leaving the area.⁴ Their names have not been publicly released.

How Police Identified the Suspects

The investigation stretched nearly three years. Detectives had video from that night, including footage of multiple people waving guns inside the party itself, but the distance from the camera to the shooting made it hard to identify the shooters from the footage alone.¹

The break came through forensics. Ray Torres’s attorney turned over a 9mm handgun to police, and ballistic testing confirmed it was the weapon used to kill Romero. Records showed Torres had purchased the gun in April 2021.¹ Detectives also determined that Torres had been driving the Jeep.²

Gutierrez was interviewed and admitted firing several rounds from inside the Jeep. He said he had used Torres’s gun because he believed a group of people outside the vehicle were pointing firearms at them, that he fired back after hearing shots, and that he was unsure whether he had hit anyone.¹ No one else at the party has been publicly identified as a suspect or charged.

Charges and Custody Status

Ray Torres, 28, turned himself in to Albuquerque police in early June 2024 and was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center. He was charged with an open count of murder and conspiracy to commit murder.¹

Alexavier Gutierrez, 26, was arrested about two weeks later, on July 5, 2024, at the Border Patrol station in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, and held at the Doña Ana County Detention Center.⁴⁵ He faces the same charges: an open count of murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

On July 9, 2024, a district court judge sided with prosecutors and ordered Gutierrez held without bond pending trial.⁶ Torres was also ordered held until trial.⁵ As of the most recent reporting in mid-2024, Torres’s next court appearance was set for 2025, and both cases remained pending in Bernalillo County.⁷

Who Lorenzo Romero Was

Lorenzo Alejandro Romero was born on April 20, 2003, and was 18 when he died. Known to friends and family as “Lolo,” he was the second of six children born to his mother, Erika Walker.⁷ He had recently graduated from Valley High School, where he earned All-State honors in football and was on the Valley Vikings basketball team that won a state championship. As a younger kid, he was an All-Star baseball player.⁸

His mother described him as “funny and smart and protective,” saying he “impacted so many people and made such an impression on so many lives in his short 18 years.”⁷

His Mother’s Advocacy

In the years after Lorenzo’s death, Erika Walker became a public advocate for families affected by gun violence. She told reporters, “Something’s broken somewhere, you know, because it seems like APD is like getting people off the streets. But then they’re going to jail and getting out on ankle bracelets.”⁵

She has also spoken about the toll of losing her son. “Was he scared? Did he want his mom? Did he pray? It just, it makes me wonder,” she said. To other families waiting for answers, she said, “The truth always comes out. It really does in any type of situation.”⁵

1
Albuquerque Journal. Murder Charges Filed in 2021 Halloween Party Shooting
2
KOB 4. 2 Men Charged in Deadly 2021 Halloween Party Shooting
3
City of Albuquerque. Lorenzo Romero – 2021 Homicide Investigations
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KRQE. Second Suspect Arrested for Deadly 2021 Halloween Party Shooting in SE ABQ
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KOB 4. Mother of Homicide Victims Shares Her Experience
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KOB 4. Man Accused of Deadly Shooting at Halloween Party To Remain in Jail
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KOAT. Alexavier Gutierrez To Stay in Jail After Deadly House Party Shooting
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Direct Funeral Services. Lorenzo Romero Obituary