APD Arrests Suspect in Recent Murder on West Side
APD detectives arrested Andrew Chavez overnight and charged him with the March 24, 2024 shooting death of Armando Salazar on Albuquerque’s far West Side.
Chavez, 28, is charged with an open count of murder for the shooting death of Salazar, 49, on the morning of March 24. Officers responded to a call shortly after 7 a.m. that a deceased male was located near 98th St and 102nd St., N.W. The victim’s body was lying on the road in a secluded area near the mesa. When officers and rescue personnel arrived, they determined the victim had a gunshot wound to the head.
Detectives later learned that Salazar drove a red 2009 Lincoln MKS and identified the car through video surveillance near the scene before the murder took place. Detectives started searching for the vehicle, along with the phone that belonged to Salazar.
Detectives tracked the vehicle and the phone to an apartment located at 1200 Dickerson Dr., S.E. SWAT officers responded to the location and executed a search warrant on Tuesday. Six people were detained and questioned by homicide detectives. The warranted resulted in the recovery of bloody clothes, phones, a gun and other items connected to the victim and the stolen car.
Chavez declined to speak to detectives. He was charged and booked into the Metro Detention Center.
Detectives also arrested and booked two other individuals who were in the apartment. Francisco Tafoya and Gracy Tenorio were booked on felony warrants.