Suspect arrested after University of New Mexico dorm shooting leaves 1 dead

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A shooting early Friday at a University of New Mexico dormitory killed a 14-year-old boy, wounded a 19-year-old and prompted the evacuation of hundreds of students and a campuswide search for the suspect, who has since been taken into custody.

University officials lifted a shelter in place order late Friday afternoon, saying there was still an active investigation and that the main campus in Albuquerque would remain closed. They said students were allowed to eat at the dining hall and return to their dorms but otherwise should avoid the crime scene.

New Mexico State Police Chief Troy Weisler said officers took a male suspect into custody about 2:30 p.m. John Fuentes, 18, was booked on the charges of first-degree murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault and tampering with evidence, according to the New Mexico State Police. Fuentes will be held without bond and remain in custody until his conditions of release are determined by the district court.

It was unclear whether Fuentes has legal representation. Police said they did not have any information on the suspect's representation. New Mexico Law Offices of the Public Defender will be looking at the case and getting Fuentes a legal representation team as soon as possible if he needs its representation, said spokesperson Maggie Shepard. An email was left with the public defender representing Fuentes during his arraignment Saturday.

Four people, including the suspect, were playing video games inside a dorm room belonging to one of them when the shooting began, Joseph Silva, chief of the University of New Mexico Police Department, said at a news conference.

The 14-year-old was fatally shot, and the others fled the room, Weisler said. A 19-year-old male sought treatment at a hospital and said he was shot on campus.

Authorities were investigating why the suspect fired a gun, Weisler said. Police were working with prosecutors to draft charging documents, he said.

Officials issued an initial alert just before 3:30 a.m. that a shooting had taken place. Another alert asking people to shelter in place was sent out just after 6 a.m. Police evacuated parts of the campus.

“We had a student orientation going so there were like 400 kids in dorms, so we wanted to make sure they were safe,” said Lt. Tim Delgado with the University of New Mexico Police Department.

For much of the day, authorities had the area around the student housing complex cordoned off with yellow tape as police vehicles blocked roadways and investigators gathered.

Mikey Beck, who was staying in student housing this week as part of new student orientation, said he heard gunshots overnight and saw what appeared to be an injured person hiding in some bushes. Two other people jumped out of a dorm window and ran, he said.

Beck said he was excited to start his freshman year but the incident was disconcerting.

“It’s really sketchy out here. Just being in Albuquerque is really scary,” he said.

Not far from the dorms, a line of university buses waited for students to board, many of them carrying backpacks and pulling small luggage carts with their belongings. The university was conducting a “staged, tactical evacuation,” spokesperson Cinnamon Blair said in an emailed statement. People were told not to move without direction from campus police.

The university in central Albuquerque has about 23,000 students during the school year. New students like Beck have been visiting as part of scheduled orientations ahead of the fall semester, which begins in about three weeks.

An increased law enforcement presence on and around the campus was planned for coming days, university President Garnett Stokes said in a letter to the campus community.

“We understand this incident may be especially distressing for new students and their families who are here this week for orientation,” Garnett wrote.

Mayor Tim Keller said his thoughts were with the victim’s loved ones and the university community.

“We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of life that occurred" on the University of New Mexico campus, Keller said in a statement.

New Mexico’s largest city has struggled with violent crime in recent years, particularly among juveniles. District Attorney Sam Bregman, who is running for the Democratic nomination for governor, has called for state lawmakers to do more to address what he describes as a crisis.

“This is an absolute tragedy," Bregman said in a statement. "Once again, a child has lost their life at the hands of a teenager. The combination of teenagers and guns is a toxic and deadly mix — and we must do everything in our power to stop it."

The plea for legislative action comes amid violence in New Mexico involving young suspects, including a fatal hit-and-run in Albuquerque and a shooting in Las Cruces in March that killed three and wounded 15 others.

Prosecutors, law enforcement and Republican lawmakers have pressed Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to convene a special legislative session to address the state’s crime problem. Despite voicing her disappointment with the Democratic-controlled Legislature at the end of the last session, the governor has not given recent indications that she will be calling lawmakers back to Santa Fe.

Brown reported from Billings, Montana. Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed.

This story corrects the first name of University of New Mexico Police Department Chief Joseph Silva.

Students carry their belongings as they board buses during what University of New Mexico officials called a "staged, tactical evacuation" following an early morning shooting on the campus in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Friday, July 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

Authorities block access to an area on the University of New Mexico campus where two people were shot, one of them fatally, in the early morning hours in Albuquerque, N.M., on Friday, July 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

Authorities block access to an area on the University of New Mexico campus where two people were shot, one fatally, in the early morning hours in Albuquerque, N.M., on Friday, July 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

An officer talks to a delivery driver at a roadblock on the University of New Mexico campus where two people were shot, one of them fatally, in the early morning hours in Albuquerque, N.M., on Friday, July 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan)

Family members embrace at the University of New Mexico Central Campus after a deadly shooting at Casas del Rio (Gila), a student housing center, early Friday, July 25, 2025 in Albuquerque, N.M. (Chancey Bush/The Albuquerque Journal via AP)

Authorities investigate a deadly shooting at Casas del Rio (Gila), a student housing center at the University of New Mexico Central Campus. early Friday, July 25, 2025 in Albuquerque, N.M. (Chancey Bush/The Albuquerque Journal via AP)

New Mexico State Police are on scene at the University of New Mexico Central Campus while authorities investigate a deadly shooting at Casas del Rio (Gila), a student housing center, early Friday, July 25, 2025, in Albuquerque, N.M. (Chancey Bush/The Albuquerque Journal via AP)

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo couldn’t remember hearing boos from his home crowd during his brilliant 13-year career in Milwaukee.

It happened Tuesday midway through the Bucks’ 139-106 loss to a Minnesota Timberwolves team that was playing without Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert.

“I’ve never been a part of something like that before,” Antetokounmpo said after the game. “Something new for me.”

The two-time MVP responded the same way he has whenever he’s been booed on the road. After making a driving layup and drawing a foul in the opening minute of the third quarter, Antetokounmpo offered a thumbs-down gesture and booed back.

“When I get booed, I boo back,” Antetokounmpo said. “I’ve been doing it all season.”

Those boos poured down after Milwaukee trailed 76-45 at the break. Never before in franchise history had the Timberwolves built such a big halftime lead in a road game.

Antetokounmpo acknowledged the Bucks’ effort was low Tuesday. He also expanded on why the boos bothered him.

“I don’t think it’s fair,” Antetokounmpo said. “But everybody has their opinion to do what they want to do. I’m not going to tell them what to do and how they should act when we don’t play hard or win, or we lose games or we’re not where we’re supposed to be. And I don’t think anybody has the right to tell me how I should act on the basketball court after I’ve been here 13 years and I’m basically the all-time leader in everything.”

The Bucks’ latest loss came as they approach the midway point of a season that hasn’t met their expectations.

Milwaukee (17-23) is 11th in the Eastern Conference standings, meaning the Bucks would have to rally in the second half just to reach the play-in round of the postseason. That’s a precipitous fall for a team that has made nine straight playoff appearances and won the NBA title in 2021.

The Bucks’ precarious position means they can’t afford to have performances like the one they delivered against a short-handed Minnesota team Tuesday. Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers blamed it on “dead legs” after the game, noting the Bucks had just returned from a four-game trip and are about to go back on the road for their next two contests.

“Dead legs cannot be an excuse,” Antetokounmpo said. “We have to be better.”

Antetokounmpo noted that the improvement must start with him, though he delivered 25 points, eight rebounds and five assists on Tuesday. He was asked how the Bucks could step up in the second half to put themselves back in playoff position.

“Playing hard,” Antetokounmpo said. “Playing the right way. Playing selfless basketball, which we don’t. I don’t know. I really don’t know. Those three things are important. I know that they’re important for you to win. Right now there’s so many things that we can do better. Let’s just start by, ’Can we just play harder? Can we just play the right way? Can we create advantages for the next player? Can we just play for our teammate, play for the team, play for ourselves?' Let’s start with that, and I think everything will follow.”

Antetokounmpo has offered similar messages after other losses this season, but the Bucks still haven’t put it all together. They haven’t won more than two straight games at any point this season.

“Maybe we are not connected as much as we should,” Antetokounmpo said. “Maybe my voice is just a broken record and guys are just tired and guys might tend to do what they want to do. I don’t know. But as a leader, it doesn’t matter. Being a leader is the same thing as being a dad. You have to keep on being available, being consistent with your words and your actions over and over and over again. One day you hope the message is going to go through.”

In the meantime, Antetokounmpo says he will keep responding to boos the same way, no matter who’s doing the jeering.

“I thrive through adversity,” Antetokounmpo said. “I thrive when people don’t believe in me. Doesn’t matter if I’m on the road, if I’m at home, if I’m at my family dinner, if I’m at a practice facility against my teammate.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo shoots between Minnesota Timberwolves' Julius Randle and Naz Reid during the second half of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo reacts aftetr being fouled during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)