On the evening of April 7, 2026, 20-year-old Gabriel Montano was found dead in the street on Don Gabal Loop NW in an Albuquerque neighborhood west of Old Town after calls of gunfire shortly after 8 p.m. Two men, 22-year-old Xavier Torres and 19-year-old John Gonzales, were at the scene with their hands raised and were taken into custody. They initially claimed self-defense, saying Montano had reached for a handgun in a cross-body pack, but detectives noted inconsistencies in their statements.

Investigators say Torres and Gonzales lured Montano to their residence expecting him to be armed and armed themselves. Surveillance footage reportedly shows one suspect stepping back and then firing roughly 10 to 15 shots at Montano without warning. Searches recovered multiple weapons and related items, including handgun magazines in a backpack, a Glock in a children’s bedroom, and a sawed-off 12-gauge shotgun. Torres and Gonzales were charged with open-count murder and booked into the Metro Detention Center.

Records show Torres had a pending 2023 allegation of pointing a gun at a family member and Gonzales had a 2023 juvenile record. Authorities later charged 44-year-old Latasha Hicks, the suspects’ mother, with murder, conspiracy, and child abuse, alleging she helped them obtain firearms and lied about a surveillance camera that recorded the incident. Does anyone have information about Gabriel’s movements that evening or the neighborhood surveillance?