Accused man threatens family with gun

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - A 19-year-old Albuquerque man, who already has a criminal past, now has a long list of new charges after threatening a family with a gun, hitting a passerby and running from police Friday night.

Police say the man made it known several times that he is in a gang.

Luis Arreola-Palma was in court Sunday after his arrest Friday for eight charges, including attempted robbery with a deadly weapon, child abuse and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

It all started just before 11 p.m. Friday night in a residential neighborhood near Central and Coors Northwest.

KRQE News 13 spoke to a man who lives there but didn't want to reveal his identity for safety reasons.

“My nephew and sister in law were loading up the car in the front yard,” he said. “I heard some commotion, yelling and screaming."

Police say a man pointed a handgun directly at each family member, even a 2-year-old girl in the car, demanding they get away from it.

The mother hurried to get her daughter from the car while the man, suspected to be Arreola-Palma, ran down the street.

“I couldn't believe what happened. I didn't think… it was hard to put it all together. It happened so quick, but I saw the guy walking away. I made sure all the kids were safe. We got everybody inside and called 911,” the man said.

Police say Arreola-Palma then tried to steal a bike, yelling at a bicyclist to get off and hitting him in the head with his gun before running off again.

Police eventually chased him down near an apartment a few blocks away from the first crime scene.

The family member we spoke with is thankful the suspect didn’t use the gun he pointed at so many victims, but it was still enough to make the 11-year resident think about moving.

“Everybody is still shaken up," he said.