Background: News footage of the scene of Santiago Roybal”s 2023 murder in Albuquerque, N.M. (KOAT). Inset: Raeanna Ruiz (Albuquerque Police Department).
A New Mexico mother pleaded guilty to a second-degree murder charge after she drove her two teenage children to an apartment complex to allegedly shoot a man they believed was stalking them.
Raeanna Ruiz, 35, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Thursday after pleading guilty to second-degree murder, conspiracy, and aggravated battery in connection with the October 2023 shooting death of Santiago Roybal, 19. According to a press release from the Albuquerque Police Department at the time, Ruiz was behind the wheel of a white SUV seen on surveillance cameras pulling into the parking lot of an apartment complex in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Also in the car were Ruiz’s 15-year-old son and 16-year-old daughter, who allegedly chased Roybal down and shot him dead.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by Law&Crime, surveillance video captured the image of Roybal running away from the white SUV, later determined to be driven by Ruiz. A female figure — Ruiz’s 16-year-old daughter, Dylana Barela — was seen carrying a firearm while her 15-year-old brother — Christopher Barela — was seen carrying a baseball bat.
Roybal’s friend, who was a tenant at the apartment complex, let the fleeing Roybal inside. The friend was shot as he closed the door, and the shots continued after the door closed. Police said that surveillance video picked up a female voice yelling “Shoot through the door” as the gunfire rang out.
Roybal was fatally struck by one of those shots, police said. He was declared dead at the scene.
After the shooting ended, a male and a female were seen running away from the apartment.
In an interview with police, Dylana Barela allegedly stated that she believed a man was “stalking” her for months and looking into her bedroom window. When she spotted a man in the backyard of the family’s home on Oct. 18, 2023, she told her mother and grabbed a gun. Dylana Barela allegedly told police that Christopher Barela retrieved a baseball bat and the three family members went to confront the man in the backyard.
According to court documents obtained by the Albuquerque Journal, Dylana Barela said once the family chased Roybal down at the apartment, which was blocks away from the family’s home, her mother instructed her to shoot him.
According to police, Dylana Barela said that “it was not supposed to happen this way, and that they were only supposed to beat this guy and maybe pistol whip him a few times.”
After the shooting, investigators viewed the surveillance video and identified “several distinct features” on the SUV — “the rims on the vehicle, the taillights, and the front grille of the vehicle,” as well as “a black dealership logo” and a UNM plate — making it easy to track the vehicle to Ruiz. Ruiz also reportedly discussed the incident with a friend on Facebook and asked for recommendations for a lawyer.
During the conversation Ruiz had with her friend before the shooting, Ruiz said that she believed the person in her backyard was “[s]tealing.” The friend allegedly egged Ruiz on, saying, “Go get them gangster.”
While at her friend’s home, Ruiz parked her white SUV in front and threw a tarp over it, police said.
Dylana and Christopher Barela were also charged with open murder and are in custody at the Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center.
