ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A man charged in connection to shooting at his girlfriend’s home and shooting her dad has been released pending trial after the girlfriend backtracked on her statement. According to the criminal complaint, back in August, 18-year-old Gabriel Hernandez got into a fight with his girlfriend Alycia Lujan and shot into the home with seven people inside including three minors. Her father was hit in the ankle.
The state asked for pretrial detention based on the violent nature of the crime and related gun charges. They added that Hernandez threatened to shoot Lujan after the shooting.
In court Friday, Lujan said the police didn’t properly investigate and said her dad opened fire first. “Gabriel shot through the screen, yeah but his bullets never went through the screen door or the main door. You can clearly tell because the casings from inside were different from the casings that were outside because my dad had his own gun. My dad was already shooting at Gabriel first before Gabriel came and shot back at him. Yeah it was bad what Gabriel did shooting back, I agree but he was being shot at first,” said Lujan.
The defense asked Lujan why this wasn’t what she told police the day of the shooting. She said she was in shock about what happened and wasn’t thinking clearly. During questioning, Lujan said she and Hernandez have talked almost daily while he’s been locked up. Judge David Murphy ruled based on the lack of a criminal and disputes over the facts of the case that Hernandez should be released.
