Suspect in double homicide in custody; portions of slayings posted to Facebook, police say
Two people are dead and one man is in custody following a Sunday evening standoff with police in Las Vegas.
Alejandro Alirez, 23, of Las Vegas, was arrested Sunday night and charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of Cristal Cervantes and her grandfather Victor Cervantes, according to an arrest affidavit filed in San Miguel Magistrate Court.
San Miguel County Sheriff’s deputies were contacted Sunday by Alirez’s mother who said her son was at the home of Cristal Cervantes where he was acting “irate” and had a handgun, according to the affidavit.
Soon after deputies arrived at the home in the 400 block of Peggy Lee Lane, Alirez fired shots at them from inside the home. Deputies took cover behind police vehicles, and one vehicle was struck by a bullet. Deputies then requested assistance from New Mexico State Police and the Las Vegas Police Department.
Officer Dusty Francisco with State Police told the Optic that the State Police Tactical Team and Crisis Negotiation Team had responded to assist sheriff’s deputies, and that crisis negotiators were able to persuade Alirez to surrender peacefully. However, police soon made a gruesome discovery.
“After a search of the residence, officers located two deceased victims inside of the residence,” Francisco said.
Some aspects of the double shooting were streamed on Facebook as they happened, according to police.
Once in police custody, Alirez told investigators he believed someone was allowing people to come into his bedroom to have sex with him while he was asleep. He also believed “multiple children” were being molested and he “needed to save them,” according to the affidavit. He told police he wanted his sisters to kill their children and was upset when they wouldn’t, so he purchased a .45-caliber Highpoint pistol that he planned to kill his nieces and nephews with.
Alirez admitted to shooting Cristal Cervantes once in the stomach before shooting Victor Cervantes in the head. He said he returned to the bedroom where Cristal Cervantes was and shot her in the head, and that he believed Victor Cervantes was “pretending to be dead,” so he shot him a second time.
Alirez also admitted to firing eight rounds at police, and said he hoped to shoot deputies in the head or neck because he knew it would kill them.
In April 2018, Alirez was arrested after he broke into a bank in Taos, according to documents filed in Taos Magistrate Court.
Officers with the Taos Police Department responded to an alarm around 2 a.m. at the Centinel Bank of Taos on April 19, 2018. They located Alirez inside the building, and when confronted by officers, Alirez discharged a fire extinguisher at police and began throwing objects at them, including metal rods and a ladder, according to court records.
Police said Alirez was armed with “two large knives,” and that he refused to drop them. Police fired a Taser at Alirez, but he continued to struggle with police as they arrested him.
Alirez was charged with aggravated burglary, and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer. A mental evaluation found Alirez competent to stand trial, but the charges were dropped in March 2019, according to court records.
Alirez was also arrested for car theft in March 2017 after he stole a car that belonged to his sister’s boyfriend, according to documents filed in San Miguel Magistrate Court. Police allege Alirez was with his sister at a medical clinic when he got into the car and drove away, nearly striking his sister who was pregnant at the time. Prosecutors dismissed the charges in April 2019 because they didn’t have cooperation from the victims in the crime.
The Taos News reported in April 2018 that while Alirez was sought by police in the theft of the car, he was arrested in Pueblo, Colorado, after breaking into a bank in Pueblo. The Taos News also reported that, according to his mother, Alirez suffered a seizure in 2017 that nearly killed him and ultimately left him brain-damaged.
Alirez was booked into the San Miguel County Detention Center late Sunday night, charged with seven felonies. In addition to two counts of first-degree murder, Alirez is charged with four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, and one count of shooting at a dwelling.
Fourth Judicial District Attorney Richard Flores told the Optic his office will seek to have Alirez held without bond until trial.