Man accused of gunning employees down in South Valley over oil

Two people were fatally shot in the South Valley on Sunday after an argument over oil cans, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office said.

Ismael Tena, 27, of Albuquerque, was charged Monday with two open counts of murder. He is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center.

Deputies were dispatched around 5:15 p.m. on Sunday to an O’Reilly Auto Parts store near Coors Boulevard and Blake Road SW after receiving reports of a shooting, BSCO spokesperson Jayme Gonzales said in a news release on Monday.

Two minutes later, BSCO received a call from Tena, who told deputies he was “scared for his life and that two O’Reilly’s employees came after him,” before he hung up the phone, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court.

Upon arriving, deputies found two O’Reilly’s employees, Richard Newman, 47, who was dead on scene with one gunshot wound and Jesus Valdez, 18, who died on the way to the hospital, Gonzales said.

Deputies searched the area and found Tena’s truck near Isleta and Blake, where they conducted a traffic stop and detained the man, police said. A firearm was located in the vehicle and Tena told deputies it was the firearm used in the shooting, according to the BCSO.

Tena told deputies he had gone to O’Reilly’s with his dad to exchange an incorrect oil filter he had gotten earlier in the day when he and an employee began to argue over the car part.

According to Tena’s father, the men asked for two additional cans of motor oil because the originals were “wasted” because of the filter. Tena took two oil cans and walked out of the store after employees told Tena they would not give him two new cans of oil.

Tena walked out of the shop and two employees followed him outside, where the argument turned physical.

“Tena said both employees were shoving and punching him repeatedly,” the criminal complaint said. “Fearing for his safety, Tena went to his vehicle and retrieved a firearm.”

Tena told deputies he had warned the employees he would shoot, and an employee responded “go ahead” before Tena shot the employees multiple times because “he was scared for his life.”

In December 2024, Tena was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, but the case was dismissed without prejudice due to a witness failing to appear in court, according to court records.