SHIPROCK, N.M. (TCN) — A 25-year-old man stands accused of breaking into his ex-girlfriend’s home and fatally stabbing her father.
According to a criminal complaint, in the early hours of June 27, the Navajo Nation Police Department responded to a possible stabbing at a home in Shiprock, where they found a man on the ground with facial wounds. Emergency services personnel arrived and observed a laceration to the victim’s neck and pronounced him deceased at the scene.
According to the complaint, when searching the area, officers discovered pools of blood on the driveway and throughout the house.
Authorities identified Armondo Paul, the ex-boyfriend of the victim’s daughter, as the primary suspect. He fled the scene but was apprehended on June 28.
According to the complaint, Paul told investigators that on June 27, he brought a kitchen knife to his ex-girlfriend’s house, “which he intended to use to harm himself.” Paul allegedly “decided to shut off the power to elicit a response,” and his ex-girlfriend then exited the residence. Her father reportedly tried to calm Paul down.
Paul allegedly said that his ex and her father went back into the house, and he “felt rage” before kicking the door and knocking back his ex-girlfriend and her dad.
According to the complaint, Paul told authorities he pulled and grabbed his ex’s arm, and her father tried to pull him off. Paul then retrieved a knife and allegedly stabbed him in the neck. Paul reportedly said the victim fell and pulled the knife out of his neck before walking outside and collapsing in the driveway.
The suspect allegedly told investigators he went to his ex-girlfriend’s room, and she was with her baby, who was startled, so he went back outside. The complaint alleges that Paul later went back into his ex-girlfriend’s room again and “announced he was going to kill himself because he was a monster, and he deserved it.”
When the ambulance arrived, Paul reportedly fled to avoid arrest and discarded the weapon he allegedly used to stab the victim.
In an interview with Paul’s ex, she purportedly claimed that Paul has “always been abusive.” He allegedly “hit her, cornered her, took her phone, and broke things.” When Paul’s ex tried to break off the relationship, she alleges that he reacted “violently” and “would not take no as an answer.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico announced July 3 that Paul faces a federal charge of second-degree murder and faces up to life in prison if convicted. He will remain in custody pending trial.
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