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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – “We heard pop, pop, pop, pop, four or five shots,” recounted Gil Valdez, a shopper at the Coronado Center on Friday afternoon.
The Albuquerque Police Department (APD) swiftly responded to the incident, which marks at least the third shooting involving a minor with a gun at this mall in the past year.
This latest event unfolded outside the Fuddruckers restaurant when a security guard confronted a 17-year-old, Nathaniel Martinez, who was sleeping inside the establishment.
Public Information Officer Gilbert Gallegos noted, “I think I’ve been to six different shootings probably in the last few years outside of the mall.
According to the source, the one thing in common I think with every one of them, except maybe one, is kids with a gun.”
Witnesses reported that Martinez refused to leave the restaurant, leading to a physical altercation with the security guard.
As Martinez walked away, he allegedly fired at least three rounds, striking the guard in the calf. One bullet even pierced a window of Saggio’s, a nearby restaurant.
Valdez described the situation, “Security came over to ask him to leave, and they started arguing right behind me, and then the security guy kind of had to force him out of the store.”
Following the incident, Martinez fled across Louisiana Boulevard, where he reportedly discarded the gun under a vehicle. Police later recovered the weapon and apprehended Martinez after a brief foot chase.
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The security guard, who was injured in the shooting, was transported to the hospital and is expected to recover.
Martinez now faces serious charges, including aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, two counts of aggravated assault, and shooting at a dwelling or occupied building, among others.