Crime
Four Suspects in Las Cruces Young Park Shooting Plead Not Guilty, All to Be Tried as Adults
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — The four individuals accused in the deadly mass shooting at Young Park appeared in court Monday morning for their initial hearings, where each entered a plea of not guilty.
Doña Ana County District Attorney Fernando Macias confirmed that all four suspects — including two juveniles — are being charged and tried as adults.
“All four are going to be joined together, at least initially in terms of their cases,” said Macias. “And again, we anticipate going forward, all four of them are being tried as adults.”
The suspects have been formally indicted on multiple charges, including first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
They have been identified as:
- Tomas Rivas, 20
- Nathan Rivas, 17
- Gustavo Dominguez, 17
- Josiah Ontiveros, 15
The charges stem from the March 21 shooting at Young Park during a car meet event, which left three people dead and 15 others injured in one of the deadliest mass shootings in recent Las Cruces history.
Authorities stated that all four suspects have prior criminal records.
Notably, three of the individuals have a documented history of criminal activity together.
The investigation remains ongoing, and additional details may be presented as the case progresses through the legal system.
Authorities have identified the man shot and killed Friday afternoon in a parking lot outside a Little Caesars restaurant in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood.
The victim has been named as Stevens Jeffrey, 29, according to police and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The shooting occurred in the 2600 block of West Cermak Road near Rockwell Street at approximately 1:10 p.m., according to the Chicago Police Department (CPD).
Preliminary reports indicate that Jeffrey was sitting in his vehicle when he was approached by an unknown vehicle.
An armed individual exited that vehicle and opened fire, striking Jeffrey multiple times in the face and body.
Emergency responders arrived on the scene, where Jeffrey was pronounced dead. He was discovered inside his vehicle with his two young children, ages 4 and 6, who were unharmed.
Both children were transported to Stroger Hospital for precautionary evaluation.
The shooting took place in the parking lot of a Little Caesars restaurant, where investigators recovered multiple shell casings and placed numerous evidence markers on the ground.
As of Friday evening, no suspects are in custody, and detectives from the CPD Area Four Homicide Unit are leading the investigation. Police have not released information on a possible motive.
Authorities are urging anyone with information about this homicide to contact Chicago Police or submit an anonymous tip at CPDTip.com.