15-year old New Mexico teen who killed five family members had intended on mass shooting at Walmart
Shooter Nehemia Griego, age 15
A 15-year old boy, Nehemiah Griego, used an AR-15 assault rifle to shoot his two parents and three younger siblings in the head, killing them. He then loaded up his car with his weapons and intended to drive to a local Walmart for a mass shooting. His father was a pastor and prison minister.
From an article:
Authorities believe a 15-year-old New Mexico teen accused of shooting his parents and three younger siblings to death over the weekend planned to drive to a nearby Wal-Mart, kill more people there and eventually die in a shootout with police, the Albuquerque Journal reports.
Nehemiah Griego packed loaded weapons, including an assault rifle, into the family car in preparation for the alleged attack, according to the newspaper.
But before he could carry out his plan, the teen reportedly called and related his crime to a friend who convinced him to meet at Calvary Chapel.
According to the Journal, Griego stayed at the church for hours before telling a security guard his family had been killed. The guard drove the teenager home and notified police upon seeing the crime scene.
Investigators trying to piece together what led to the violence late Saturday night found several guns, including an AR-15 assault rifle and a .22 caliber pistol, Bernalillo County Sheriff Dan Houston said Sunday. The owner of the weapons has not been determined.
Griego was arrested following the shootings at the residence in a rural area southwest of downtown Albuquerque, the sheriff's department said. He was charged with two counts of murder and three counts of child abuse resulting in death.
Authorities identified the victims as Greg Griego, 51, his wife Sara Griego, 40, and three of their children: a 9-year-old boy, Zephania Griego, and daughters Jael Griego, 5, and Angelina Griego, 2.
Nehemiah Griego had never been in trouble with the law, according to state officials. The state's child welfare agency has no record of any contacts with the 15-year-old or his family, spokesman Bob Tafoya said Monday.
A records check by the Department of Children, Youth and Families also indicated the youth "had no involvement with the juvenile justice system whatsoever," Tafoya said.
Luckily, that friend convinced him to instead go to a local church, where the teen eventually surrendered.
Where did the boy get his AR-15 assault rifle? Did the family purchase it at the Walmart? Walmart sells five different types of assault rifles.
Why did the boy want to target Walmart, of all places? Hmmm.....
Could he have been inspired by this previous plot to shoot up a Walmart?
(related: there had been a gang-related shooting at an Albuquerque Walmart last February).
Walmart. Save money. Die faster.
UPDATE (1/23/13): According to a follow-up article, the boy got the gun by raiding his parents' closet, where the guns and ammo were not apparently locked up, while his mother slept. He killed her first, then killed his three younger siblings because they were upset, then ambushed his father when he got home from an overnight shift at a mission. The article confirms his intent to shoot up random people at a Walmart, and to die at the hands of police, but instead he went to a church to meet his younger girlfriend. He may have been interested in killing her parents, too. When interviewed by the police, it became apparent to them that the boy was very wrapped up in his love of extremely violent video games.
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Walmart Shootings: January 2013
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