Man charged in homicide outside NE ABQ motel last month

A man was arrested after allegedly gunning down another man over a stolen shirt at an International District motel last month.

Jonathan Morales, 35, is charged with an open count of murder and tampering with evidence in the Nov. 15 killing of Adan Valenzuela-Morales, 27. One court record states Morales is from Albuquerque, while another indicates he is homeless.

The two men are not related, Albuquerque Police Department spokesperson Gilbert Gallegos said.

Morales is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center. His attorney could not be reached for comment.

“Adan was shot during this incident, but it was determined that he was the primary aggressor,” according to a criminal complaint filed at Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court.

Police said they identified Morales through their databases.

Around 9:35 a.m. the day of the incident, APD responded to a ShotSpotter activation at the Loma Verde Motel in the 7500 block of East Central.

When officers arrived, they saw a “soapy puddle of water” that “appeared to contain blood” and a projectile, but no body. A hospital employee told police a man — later identified as Valenzuela-Morales — came to the hospital, where he died.

A witness told police that they saw a man standing over another man before shooting him and running west on Central, police said.

The Office of the Medical Investigator told police Valenzuela-Morales was shot twice in the lower back, according to the complaint.

Valenzuela-Morales’ parents and sister — who drove up from Mexico after learning about the homicide — told police they received a video from an “unknown person” saying Morales shot Valenzuela-Morales, police said.

Valenzuela-Morales’ friend told police there were rumors of Valenzuela-Morales and Morales fighting over a stolen shirt. The friend said Valenzuela-Morales punched Morales and as Valenzuela-Morales walked away, Morales shot him in the back, the complaint states.

A witness told police he was at the motel when he heard “Pop! Pop! Pop!” and a woman scream. He then told police he saw a “young boy” fall to the ground “holding his gut,” police said. The witness added that the shooter “definitely wanted to kill him ... no question about that. ... (H)e kept pulling the trigger ... click, click, click, click, click. ... (H)e jammed, or he just ain’t got no more bullets in there,” the complaint states.

The witness then told police he saw the man — later identified as Morales — change T-shirts. Meanwhile, Valenzuela-Morales crawled across the parking lot and got inside a dark-colored car, which left, police said.

The witness later identified Morales through a police photo, according to the complaint.

Through video surveillance, a detective said the victim wore a shirt similar to the one Morales wore the day before.

On Wednesday, Morales was arrested in a separate case and charged with six counts of aggravated battery, aggravated battery upon a peace officer, assault upon a health care worker, escaping from custody and resisting, and evading and obstructing an officer, according to court records.

In that case, Morales reportedly stabbed a security guard, a police officer and a nurse with a pen before trying to escape from police, police said.