Authorities are still asking for the public's help in locating Francisco Melgar, who detectives say was involved in Saturday's shooting and robbery at a West Side Denny's restaurant. Anyone with information on his whereabouts should call 242-COPS, 877-SOLV-APD, or 843-STOP. Police believe there may be one more individual involved, who has not been identified. Police on Monday released the name of the victim in Saturday morning's fatal shooting at the Denny's near Coors and Iliff: Stephanie Anderson, 34. The two suspects in custody, Marvin Lopez-Aguilar, 22, and Pablo Ortiz, 32, made their first appearances in Metropolitan Court Monday afternoon. Both were ordered held without bond. Albuquerque Police say they are working with immigration and Border Patrol officials on the case. Both suspects are from El Salvador, and at least one is a member of the notorious MS-13 gang based in that country. Friends remembered the slain Denny's employee as someone who could brighten people's days, according to a story in this morning's Albuquerque Journal.
And the Journal's Jeff Proctor also reported this morning that police suspect the gang that hit Denny's on Saturday had targeted at least eight other family restaurants or their employees in recent weeks.
Two more suspects may be in trailer park. Neighbors at a West Side trailer park say police are looking for two more suspects who may have been involved in this morning's shooting. Neighbors say police are going door-to-door looking for the suspects.
About 10 a.m. as many as four men armed with rifles walked into Denny's restaurant at Coors and Iliff and fired at least one shot killing a restaurant employee. The restaurant was full at the time. Police said the men were trying to commit a "take-over" robbery when the shooting occurred. Police were able to apprehend two of the suspects shortly after the shooting. They are looking for as many as two more and have currently surrounded a house in the West Side. Police Chief Ray Schultz says investigators have identified 25-year-old Francisco Melgar as one of the other men involved in the robbery. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.
The chief says the fourth suspect has yet to be identified. At the time the robbery occurred, Albuquerque police officers were conducting a special operation targeting holdups. Police say they have seen an increase in robberies over the past several months along Coors. Keep reading ABQjournal.com for more on this developing story.
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