Authorities: NM teen planned more shootings
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - The New Mexico teenager accused of gunning down five family members over the weekend ambushed his father as he returned home from an overnight shift at a rescue mission, then reloaded his rifles and planned to go to a Wal-Mart and randomly shoot people, authorities said Tuesday.
Instead, 15-year-old Nehemiah Griego texted a picture of his dead mother to his 12-year-old girlfriend, then spent much of Saturday with the girl and her family, authorities said. That evening, he went to the church where Griego's father had been a pastor, and Griego eventually confessed to killing his parents and three younger siblings.
"The motive, as articulated by the suspect, was purely that he was frustrated with his mother," Bernalillo County Sheriff Dan Houston said. "He did not give any further explanation."
Houston said Griego had planned the shootings for at least a week, but it's unclear if he ever actually went to a Wal-Mart or why he changed his mind about continuing the attack, which occurred the same day thousands of gun advocates gathered peacefully at state capitals around the country to rally against stricter limits on firearms. The "Guns Across America" events were being held just after President Barack Obama unveiled a sweeping package of federal gun-control proposals.
Griego told detectives he also contemplated killing his girlfriend's parents, Houston said.
The sheriff said he didn't know if Griego's contact with his girlfriend avoided further bloodshed. But he said she apparently knew what had happened, and officials are investigating whether she should be charged with failing to report the crime.
"We know Nehemiah had been contemplating this for some time," Houston told reporters at a Tuesday news conference. Griego apparently had told others of his plans, but whom and when was still under investigation, Houston said.
The teen waived his right to arraignment in adult court Tuesday on charges of murder and child abuse resulting in death and a judge ordered him held without bond. He was arrested Saturday at his family's home in a rural area southwest of Albuquerque.
The sheriff's office identified the victims as Greg Griego, 51, his wife, Sarah Griego, 40, and three of their children: a 9-year-old boy, Zephania Griego, and daughters Jael Griego, 5, and Angelina Griego, 2. All appeared to have gunshot wounds to the head.
According to Houston and charging documents, it all began early Saturday at the family's home, when Nehemiah Griego - angry and annoyed with his mother - acted on what he described to investigators as homicidal and suicidal thoughts.
Houston said the teen shot his mother while she slept at about 1 a.m. with a .22 caliber rifle the parents kept in a closet. He said he killed his siblings after they woke up and became upset, then grabbed a military-style assault rifle his parents owned and waited in the downstairs bathroom to ambush his father as he returned from work at a rescue mission around 5 a.m.
Griego told authorities he then reloaded the two guns and put them in the family van.
Houston said he didn't know if Griego actually went to a Wal-Mart, but officers found the two rifles, as well as at least a dozen rounds for the .22 and a handful of rounds for the .223 caliber assault rifle in the van.
Griego spent most of Saturday with his girlfriend and her family, Houston said. At about 8 p.m., Griego went to Calvary church and told church members that his family was dead. Church officials called 911 and took Griego to his home.
Griego initially told arriving officers he had come home Saturday morning after spending time at a friend's house to discover his family dead, court documents say. The teen later confessed to shooting his mother because he "had anger issues" and was annoyed with her, the documents say.
The teen had no history of mental illness and drugs and alcohol did not appear to play a factor, Houston said. He did note, however, that the teen liked violent video games, including "Modern Warfare" and "Grand Theft Auto." He did not say whether he believed the games were a factor.
Greg Griego was a gang member-turned pastor who had once served at Calvary, one of Albuquerque's largest Christian churches. He had an extensive arrest record from his gang days, but was best known throughout the law enforcement community for his work as a voluntary chaplain.
A records check by the Children, Youth and Families Department indicated no problems with the Griego family and that Nehemiah Griego had never been in trouble with the law.
Sheriff's Deputy Aaron Williamson confirmed there was no history of any emergency calls to the home in the recent past.
"This is beyond any human reasoning or understanding," Houston said.
"It's horrific. What other words do you use? This is certainly the first time that I have been into a crime scene with this much destruction at one home."
In addition to the two rifles, there were two 12-gauge pistol-grip shotguns in the home, Houston said. Griego's father taught him to use guns, and they shot together on a regular basis, Houston said.
The home had a security-style sign outside saying "Home Protected by Smith & Wesson."
Instead, 15-year-old Nehemiah Griego texted a picture of his dead mother to his 12-year-old girlfriend, then spent much of Saturday with the girl and her family, authorities said. That evening, he went to the church where Griego's father had been a pastor, and Griego eventually confessed to killing his parents and three younger siblings.
"The motive, as articulated by the suspect, was purely that he was frustrated with his mother," Bernalillo County Sheriff Dan Houston said. "He did not give any further explanation."
Houston said Griego had planned the shootings for at least a week, but it's unclear if he ever actually went to a Wal-Mart or why he changed his mind about continuing the attack, which occurred the same day thousands of gun advocates gathered peacefully at state capitals around the country to rally against stricter limits on firearms. The "Guns Across America" events were being held just after President Barack Obama unveiled a sweeping package of federal gun-control proposals.
Griego told detectives he also contemplated killing his girlfriend's parents, Houston said.
The sheriff said he didn't know if Griego's contact with his girlfriend avoided further bloodshed. But he said she apparently knew what had happened, and officials are investigating whether she should be charged with failing to report the crime.
"We know Nehemiah had been contemplating this for some time," Houston told reporters at a Tuesday news conference. Griego apparently had told others of his plans, but whom and when was still under investigation, Houston said.
The teen waived his right to arraignment in adult court Tuesday on charges of murder and child abuse resulting in death and a judge ordered him held without bond. He was arrested Saturday at his family's home in a rural area southwest of Albuquerque.
The sheriff's office identified the victims as Greg Griego, 51, his wife, Sarah Griego, 40, and three of their children: a 9-year-old boy, Zephania Griego, and daughters Jael Griego, 5, and Angelina Griego, 2. All appeared to have gunshot wounds to the head.
According to Houston and charging documents, it all began early Saturday at the family's home, when Nehemiah Griego - angry and annoyed with his mother - acted on what he described to investigators as homicidal and suicidal thoughts.
Houston said the teen shot his mother while she slept at about 1 a.m. with a .22 caliber rifle the parents kept in a closet. He said he killed his siblings after they woke up and became upset, then grabbed a military-style assault rifle his parents owned and waited in the downstairs bathroom to ambush his father as he returned from work at a rescue mission around 5 a.m.
Griego told authorities he then reloaded the two guns and put them in the family van.
Houston said he didn't know if Griego actually went to a Wal-Mart, but officers found the two rifles, as well as at least a dozen rounds for the .22 and a handful of rounds for the .223 caliber assault rifle in the van.
Griego spent most of Saturday with his girlfriend and her family, Houston said. At about 8 p.m., Griego went to Calvary church and told church members that his family was dead. Church officials called 911 and took Griego to his home.
Griego initially told arriving officers he had come home Saturday morning after spending time at a friend's house to discover his family dead, court documents say. The teen later confessed to shooting his mother because he "had anger issues" and was annoyed with her, the documents say.
The teen had no history of mental illness and drugs and alcohol did not appear to play a factor, Houston said. He did note, however, that the teen liked violent video games, including "Modern Warfare" and "Grand Theft Auto." He did not say whether he believed the games were a factor.
Greg Griego was a gang member-turned pastor who had once served at Calvary, one of Albuquerque's largest Christian churches. He had an extensive arrest record from his gang days, but was best known throughout the law enforcement community for his work as a voluntary chaplain.
A records check by the Children, Youth and Families Department indicated no problems with the Griego family and that Nehemiah Griego had never been in trouble with the law.
Sheriff's Deputy Aaron Williamson confirmed there was no history of any emergency calls to the home in the recent past.
"This is beyond any human reasoning or understanding," Houston said.
"It's horrific. What other words do you use? This is certainly the first time that I have been into a crime scene with this much destruction at one home."
In addition to the two rifles, there were two 12-gauge pistol-grip shotguns in the home, Houston said. Griego's father taught him to use guns, and they shot together on a regular basis, Houston said.
The home had a security-style sign outside saying "Home Protected by Smith & Wesson."
This father made a mistake that everyone paid for. His firearms should have been locked in a safe, like all firearms should be.
Let's talk gun control. Â Lets keep guns out of the reach of teenagers.Â
 @MFMFIM I was a safe gun owner as a teenager.
 @TreeWizard Good for you.Â
This comment has been deleted
 @gunnutz How so?
This just makes me want to vomit....
note to any future shooting spree people: start with yourself
"The teen later confessed to shooting his mother because he "had anger issues" and was annoyed with her, the documents say"
Â
I think the common thread among these shooters, besides the guns, is "anger issues". Â What the hell does it take to go from "anger issues" to "raging homicidal lunatic"? Â Maybe we need to put effort into THAT hmmm?
Â
"Home Protected by Smith & Wesson."
Me too, except mine is Stag.
"there were two 12-gauge pistol-grip shotguns in the home"
Â
Make sure you mention the pistol grip. If it hadn't have been for the pistol grips on the weapons he left behind, none of this would have happened.
Â
Ironically, the weapons that Biden and Feinstein are going to try to ban are the ones he didn't use, and the ones they AREN'T trying to ban are the ones he used. Do that math. Exactly typical.
Â
"military-style assault rifle" is a direct quotation from Feinstein's own website. It, like "pistol grip" is a buzz word used by the anti-gun politicians and the media and seeing that language is like watching a black man in a red shirt in a '70s sci-fi movie. You know where they're going with this.
Â
The AP couldn't resist getting the "Protected by Smith&Wesson" snark in there. End a tragic story with an irony, however shameless, because it looks good in print.
 @Playanekes Ya, I thought that little tidbit about the shotguns and them having pistol grips was meant to fuel the anti-gun fire. Even though they were not used.
 @TreeWizard  Of course it wise. Throw some more gas on the fire. Wouldn't it be nice too if they would stop say assault style weapons? And that people actually new that AR meant Armalite rifle. And isn't it interested how pretty much every shooting in the news now involves an AR? I find that very out of the ordinary.
 @str1ngb3nd3r  Not sure even then I would believe it. There's an agenda at hand.
 @PTLD CITIZEN "And isn't it interested how pretty much every shooting in the news now involves an AR? I find that very out of the ordinary."
Â
Yup...I'm almost at the point of 'pics or it didn't happen'.
 @Playanekes I thought Feinstien's plan was to turn anything other than a pistol with a pistol grip into an assault weapon.
 @Jeepers That is correct. It's one of the "features" detailed at her website. That makes it possible to ban an AR-15, but not a Ruger that shoots the same cartridge. I have two stocks for my POS semiauto in five minutes I can swap between "legal" and "illegal" but in no way does it change the function or accuracy of the rifle. In fact firing prone, I can top-load ten-round stripper clips through it radically faster than I can swap 30-round magazines. Also, I have a .58 rifled musket with a bayonet like the millions used in the civil war, and if it wasn't a military-style assault weapon at Gettysburg, what was? Those are just buzzwords.
 @Playanekes It's my understanding she wants to ban everything from everyone except the gun she carries in her purse. That's sarcasm but close. The proposal is pages and pages long so understanding it is challenging. Honestly I only read part of it. But I know it includes ANY weapon that holds more than seven shells. There is other verbiage in there in regards to style size, grips etc.
He had been talking to others about his plan? Wow, and NO ONE speaks up. WTF? Why? What is wrong with people? The signs were there. He told people he was going to do it. This could have been stopped. He could still be behind bars and they would still be alive. So tragic. People need to wake the hell up. Look around. Speak up.
 @PTLD CITIZEN More than likely the vast majority of people he would have told would have been kids (like his 12 yr old girlfriend).  At that age I thought people were either not telling the truth (i.e., venting) or that I could handle the situation (oh, how naive).
Â
We need to educate our children to tell us when they hear of their friends making claims or statements like this. Â And then we need to LISTEN. Â People rarely listen to what their kids tell them. Â Or they only partially listen as they facebook, multitask, text or whatever else they might find more important.
Â
On the other hand, if this had been an adult, I totally agree. Â It could be that his parents may have even been told by one of the adults in the child's life and thought they had it handled.
Frustrated with his Mother? How many people have not been at one time or another? I see no hope of rehabilitation for this disturbed individual. I personally would not like my tax dollars going to house and feed him. I would much rather pay for a lethal injection or a bullet.