Copyright © 2020 Albuquerque Journal
Joe Macias stormed out of his mobile home Wednesday after becoming upset that he didn’t qualify for a COVID-19-related stimulus check, according to the Albuquerque Police Department.
When the 63-year-old came back, he allegedly doused his wife and mobile home with gasoline before trying to set it ablaze.
Macias was unsuccessful and is now charged with attempted murder, kidnapping and aggravated battery against a household member. He has been booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court:
Police responded around 8:30 p.m. to a family dispute at a mobile home park in the 7400 block of San Pedro NE, a few blocks north of San Antonio. Arriving officers found Macias walking down the street, his clothes soaked in gasoline.
Officers discovered Macias’ disabled wife, her hair and pajamas soaked in gasoline, on the floor inside a nearby trailer. The wife told police Macias had come home around 5 p.m. with a four-pack of beer and “upset because he did not qualify for the stimulus check.”
Once Macias finished the beer, he asked for his wife’s car keys to go buy more and, when she refused, he yelled “you’re going to pay the consequences” and stormed out. She said he came back a few hours later with a gas can and pushed her onto the floor.
The wife told police that, as she lay on the floor, unable to get up, Macias threw gasoline onto her and all over the mobile home. She said Macias then pulled out a cigarette and attempted to light it several times, but was unsuccessful due to the lighter getting gasoline on it.
