ZEPHANIA, JAEL and ANGELINA GRIEGO - 9, 5, 2 - yo - / Arrested: Brother "John" Griego - Albuquerque, NM

Authorities ID New Mexico shooting victims as Chaplain, wife, 3 kids; 15-year-old son arrested

Associated Press – 1 hr 18 mins ago

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - A 15-year-old boy remained in custody Sunday night as detectives tried to piece together what led to the shooting of his parents and three of their children who were found dead in a New Mexico home.

The teenager was arrested on murder and other charges in connection with the shootings, which happened Saturday night at the home in a rural area southwest of downtown Albuquerque, said Lt. Sid Covington, a Bernalillo County sheriff's spokesman.

Authorities identified the victims late Sunday 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.

Word of the shootings travelled quickly through the law enforcement community, and officials began offering their condolences for Greg Griego, a spiritual leader known for his work with firefighters and the 13 years he spent as a volunteer chaplain at the county jail.

"Chaplin Griego was a dedicated professional that passionately served his fellow man and the firefighters of this community," ire Chief James Breen said in a statement. "His calming spirit and gentle nature will be greatly missed."

Jail Chief Ramon Rustin said Griego was instrumental in the creation of the Metropolitan Detention Center's chaplain program and worked to get inmates integrated back into the community.

Griego also was a former member of the pastoral staff at Calvary, a Christian church in Albuquerque. As part of his work there, he oversaw the Straight Street program for jail inmates.

Authorities said each victim suffered more than one gunshot wound, and several guns were found at the home, one of which was a semi-automatic military-style rifle. Investigators were trying to determine who owned the guns.

"Right now we're to the meticulous points of processing the scene and collecting physical evidence, and this is a vast scene with a lot of physical evidence," Covington said.

Authorities declined to release details of any conversation that the 15-year-old had with investigators, but they said he was the Griegos' son. The sheriff's office said he is charged with two counts of murder and three counts of child abuse resulting in death.

The Associated Press is withholding the suspect's name during the initial investigation because he is a juvenile.

The sheriff's office said it wouldn't release any further information about the case until Sheriff Dan Houston holds a news onference Tuesday morning.

On Sunday, a police roadblock cut off public access to the narrow dirt road that leads to the home, which is surrounded by trees and an agricultural field on one side.

Neighbours said they saw the first police cars and ambulances arrive at the home Saturday night. The road was blocked and word of the shootings began to make its way through the neighbourhood.

Peter Gomez, a 54-year-old carpenter who lives about 200 yards from the home, said he had seen the family — a husband and wife and their four children — pass by many times but didn't know them personally.

"It's a horrible thing," Gomez said. "You see all this stuff that happens all over the country, the shootings in the schools and theatres, and then it happens right here. It's sad."


http://news.yahoo.com/authorities-id-mexico-shooting-victims-chaplain-wife-3-051326529.html

Bernalillo County has released the mug shot of Nehemiah Griego, a 15-year-old suspected of killing his father, mother and three young siblings Saturday in their South Valley home.

It could have been even worse.

The New Mexico teen accused of gunning down his younger siblings, his mom and his pastor father reportedly planned on continuing his killing spree at a local Walmart.

Nehemiah Griego, 15, had loaded up his family van with "several" guns that he intended to use to slaughter customers at the nearby shopping center, the Albuquerque Journal reported Monday.

Griego hoped to die in a shootout with cops, sources told the paper.

But he was talked out of the plan by a friend, who convinced him over the phone to meet him at his father’s church, the paper said.

He eventually told a church security guard about the crime, and the retired cop called 911, the report said.

The motive for the horrific slayings were still unclear, but the paper said the home-schooled teen had had a "minor disagreement" with his mom Sarah Griego Friday night.

He waited for her to fall asleep, and then is believed to have helped himself to his parents’ guns, including an AR-15 assault rifle and a .22 caliber pistol.

They’d been kept in a closet, and not in a safe, the report said.

At around 1 a.m., the gun-toting goon crept into his mom’s room and shot her, the report said.

Neighbor Jerry Crites describes 15-year-old Nehemiah Griego as 'fairly quiet' and a 'normal kid walking up and down the road.'

The shooting woke up Griego's 9-year-old brother Zephania, who'd been in bed with the mom. Griego told the boy what he'd just done — and then shot him "multiple times," the report said.

The sounds of violence roused Griego's 2- and 5-year-old sisters, Angelina and Jael, who started screaming before their big brother killed them, too.

Griego then laid in wait for his father, pastor Greg Griego, and gunned him down when he walked in around 6 a.m., the report said.

The teen then called his unidentified friend and told him about his plan to continue the killing at Walmart, but the friend convinced him to go to his father’s old church, the Calvary Chapel, the paper said.

While there, he reportedly told a guard his family had been killed. The guard drove the teen to Griego’s house in South Valley, and called 911 when he saw the pastor’s dead body, the report said.

Sources told the paper the teen had long had murder/suicide fantasies.

The South Valley home in New Mexico where the Griego family was murdered Saturday night is being investigated by local authorities.

Neighbors said they’d often seen Nehemiah walking around in Army fatigues. Local media said the home schooled teen wasn’t allowed to play video games, and that his family never let him watch violent shows on television.


Police are expected to hold a news conference about the case Tuesday morning.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/n-m-teen-accused-killing-family-quiet-article-1.1243888#ixzz2IfRzvz00

Updated: Monday, 21 Jan 2013, 1:24 PM MST

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - According to new details released the teen accused of murdering his parents and three young siblings was planning to carry out even more carnage in a public arena.

15-year-old Nehemiah Griego made up several stories before finally confessing to authorities that he had killed his father, Greg Griego , mother, Sara, and three young siblings Jael, Angelina and Zephania.

Nehemiah had at first told authorities he had come home after being at a friend’s house and found his family dead. He said that after finding the bodies he took the family van and drove to Calvary Church where he told his girlfriend that his family had been killed in a car crash.

When authorities asked why he had not called 911 the teen said he had panicked.

The teen also changed his story several times regarding why he had rifles in the cargo area of the van.

Although finally after Griego was informed by questioning officers that his story was not making sense, the teen started to tell authorities what had taken place.

Griego said he had been annoyed with his mother and was having homicidal and suicidal thoughts prior to the killings. He said on the evening of the murders he had taken a rifle from his parent’s closet and used it to first kill his mother. He then killed his younger brother and two younger sisters. The teen then waited for his father to come home and around 5 a.m. Greg Griego did just that. Nehemiah says he waited for his dad to walk past him several times before he shot his father multiple times with a separate rifle.

The teen told authorities after killing his family he reloaded his weapons so that he could “drive to populated area to murder more people.” He expressed a desire to shoot people at random and eventually be killed while exchanging gunfire with law enforcement.

Luckily he didn't make it that far.

After giving police the information above he was placed under arrest and is being charged with two counts of murder and three counts of child abuse resulting in death.

http://www.krqe.com/dpp/news/crime/complaint-details-horrific-murders

This is such a sad story. His friend that talked him into meeting him at the church should get a hero's medal.

Despicable behavior, yes; but my heart still breaks for thinking of what state of mind these young people must be in to commit such incredibly heinous crimes. They must be bereft of any hope, of seeing beyond today. Just numb. How do you mow down your little 2 yo sister with a gun that was probably bigger than her, then plan on doing it again to other innocents?

Just what are they thinking?

Ladibug, it is just unimaginable.

I am still stunned over this. What type of mental illness could a child have that would cause him to do something so horrific?

Now, he has destroyed not only his family but himself.

I'm so sick of these people murdering children and especially their own families.

I didn't post updates, although I read them because it upset me too much. A tiny little girl. His own mother. I just can't wrap my brain around it.

@ Ladibug: I couldn't agree with you more.

How awful!...yet how brave & wonderful his friend is for doing what she did...

Remembering the Griegos

By Patrick Lohmann / Journal Staff Writeron Thu, Jan 24, 2013


Photos of the Greg and Sarah Griego family on display at Calvary Chapel during a prayer vigil Wednesday. (Marla Brose/Journal)

Though the Griego family wasn’t sitting in its usual spot — front row, on the left — during Wednesday night’s service at Calvary church, around 2,000 Christians who knew the victims packed into the chapel for a night of remembrance and faith, not only for the five dead but also for the boy suspected of killing them.

“As we go to pray for the family, we realize that one of the family is in jail,” pastor Skip Heitzig told the crowd, some of whom watched the sermon on TV screens in spill-over rooms. “Now what should our instinct be? For justice? Yes. For mercy? Yes.”...

http://www.abqjournal.com/main/2013/01/24/news/remembering-the-griegos.html

My soul cries for the little angels taken too soon. I just don't see how anyone could deliberately kill children. Especially two little girls. William

I wonder about his girlfriend. Did she know he was crazy? Did she call LE when he sent her the picture of his dead mother? If she had he would not have been able to wait for hours to murder his father.

It is so sad, so incomprehensible.