Ad
Rio Rancho man accused of killing his wife
A Rio Rancho man is accused of killing his wife in a Saturday morning shooting on the 2100 block of Acapulco Road.
John Vallejos, 45, of Rio Rancho, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of of his wife, Roberta Valdez.
According to a criminal complaint filed in the Sandoval County Magistrate Court in Bernalillo, a family member of Vallejos called 911, telling dispatch Vallejos had shot his wife. The call was made about 7:30 a.m., shortly after the incident occurred.
When officers arrived at the residence, they found Vallejos sitting in his truck in the driveway and took him into custody without incident, according to the complaint. A gun was still in the truck but was not removed at that time.
Officers found Valdez unresponsive in the bedroom with a gunshot wound to the head.
While speaking with an officer about Roberta’s family, according to police, Vallejos said, “I’m sorry I took her from them.”
During an interview with detectives at the Rio Rancho Police Department, police said, Vallejos said he and Roberta had been arguing since 1 a.m. and he retrieved a gun at some point during the argument and pointed it at his own head. As they continued arguing, he said he pointed it at Roberta and it “went off,” which was when he realized he “did a bad thing.” He added that he drove around to friends and family before calling his family member telling them what he did, police said, and the family member then called 911.
