Nicole Ann Maldonado, 35, was shot and killed in the parking lot of Adam Food Market at Central and Pennsylvania in Albuquerque on January 17, 2024. The Albuquerque Police Department says the market intersection has been the scene of repeated violence; Maldonado’s slaying was described as the seventh homicide at or near that location in recent years.

Police identified 20-year-old Alexander Ortiz as a suspect while investigating a separate homicide of Alianna Farfan that occurred six days earlier. Officers traced Ortiz to a residence near the Adam Food Market on February 21, 2024, where Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office SWAT personnel took him into custody after he had barricaded himself inside. A search warrant at the residence uncovered multiple parts of a .40 caliber handgun, magazines including a 50-round drum, a Glock 22 .40 caliber slide, ammunition, and a mobile phone; investigators say several parts were similar to those used in the Adam Food Market homicide.

Ortiz was charged on March 1, 2024, with numerous counts related to Maldonado’s death, including open count murder, murder with a depraved mind, felony murder with a firearm enhancement, attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder resulting in death, multiple aggravated assault counts, and tampering with evidence. The killing renewed concern about safety at the market and the surrounding neighborhood.

If anyone has information about Nicole Maldonado, her movements that night, or activity at the Adam Food Market, please come forward to investigators.