Man arrested in Arizona accused in Albuquerque homicide

A man was arrested in Arizona after allegedly killing another man during a fight in Northeast Albuquerque.

Jon Paul Marquez, 45, is charged with an open count of murder, armed robbery and tampering with evidence in the May 14 death of 43-year-old Timothy Ruffin.

Court records show Marquez was arrested in Tucson on June 8 after allegedly stealing a vehicle and fleeing authorities. Albuquerque police spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said Marquez would be transported back to Albuquerque.

In a GoFundMe page set up for funeral costs, relatives said Ruffin was killed by “people who wanted his car.”

Relatives described Ruffin as “an amazing father, brother, son, cousin, husband, friend, and manager.”

“But most importantly, he was an amazing leader. He led us all to have a better life, whether it was his words, his leadership, his jokes, or his love,” according to the GoFundMe post.

Marquez was released to probation in August 2023 after serving a yearslong prison stretch, according to court records. By winter, Marquez had allegedly failed a drug test for methamphetamine, skipped out on treatment and cut off an ankle monitor.

In a Nov. 7 petition to revoke his probation, an officer wrote Marquez was “considered at large.”

On May 14, police responded to a shooting in the 1100 block of Pennsylvania NE, south of Interstate 40, and found Ruffin shot to death, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court. A witness told police two men were fighting on the ground when one shot the other and fled in a van.

Police said the witness took a photo of the van, and they learned it was registered to Ruffin, while a Nissan SUV was left at the scene. Bullets found inside the SUV matched the 9mm casings near Ruffin’s body and at least one projectile pulled from his buttocks.

The Nissan’s previous owner told police they sold the SUV to a man who said he traded it to Marquez before the homicide, and the man was excluded as a suspect in Ruffin’s death, according to the complaint. One of the bullet casings at the homicide scene matched those fired at Marquez’s ex-girlfriend weeks earlier.

Police said the ex-girlfriend told them Marquez fired at her on May 1 after she refused to go with him and she didn’t mention him at the time because “she was fearful” of Marquez.

Detectives learned Marquez was arrested in Tucson on June 14 and went to talk to him on June 26.

Police said Marquez told them he didn’t remember when he arrived in Arizona or how he got there, citing “his use of fentanyl as the reason for his total memory lapse.”

When detectives asked what vehicles Marquez was using after his release from prison, he asked for an attorney, according to the complaint.