APD Charges Gabriel Valenzuela-Greene Jr For Two Recent murders, Suspect in Third Murder, 2 Kidnappings, Carjacking
APD detectives charged and arrested 25-year-old Gabriel Valenzuela Green, Jr., for two murders, and consider him to be a suspect in a third murder. All three shooting deaths, which involved narcotics trafficking, occurred over a 9-day span.
Multiple detectives and investigators were aided by ShotSpotter, the NIBIN ballistics tracing program, APD’s Digital Video Recovery Team, and Digital Intel Teams for quickly solving these murders.
Shortly after the first murder on March 4, 2024, Homicide detectives learned that a man who went by the street name of “Memphis” shot two people who were smoking Fentanyl in an alleyway behind the Smoke Shop at 112 Indiana St., S.E. One of the victims, Jacob Rivera, was shot 9 times and died as a result of his wounds.
As detectives worked to learn the identity of Memphis, the second murder occurred nine days later, on the morning of March 13, in the area of 937 Pennsylvania St., N.E. The victim, Lawrence Zamora, was shot several times. During interviews at the scene of the shooting, detectives were told that a man with the nickname of Memphis shot Zamora.
Later that same day, on March 13, homicide detectives responded to another shooting shortly after 4 p.m. in the parking lot of the Twisters, located at 2107 Menaul Blvd., N.E. A suspect fatally shot Donte Barnes. The next day, on March 14, homicide detectives learned that bullet casings from both murders on March 13 – the murder of Lawrence Zamora and the murder of Donte Barnes – were a match and were fired from the same 9mm handgun.
With the likelihood that all three murders were connected to the same suspect named Memphis, detectives began receiving information about his identity. Through several investigative leads, detectives determined Gabriel Valenzuela-Greene, Jr., was the suspect known as Memphis.
On March 15, detectives tracked Valenzuela-Greene to a white BMW that drove through the Southeast Area Command. During that time period, the occupants stopped at a gun store and purchased a gun magazine. They later drove to a residence at 932 California St., S.E. Detectives obtained search warrants for the home and warrants to detain individuals who were inside the home. As SWAT officers arrived at the home, a suspect attempted to flee. He was taken into custody and identified as Valenzuela-Greene.
March 4, 2024
Location: 112 Indiana St., S.E.
Victim: Jacob Rivera, 24
Synopsis: Officers responded on the evening of March 4 to a shooting in the area of 112 Indiana St., S.E., which is near Central Ave. and Louisiana Blvd. A ShotSpotter activation also indicated 10 shots fired in the area. Two people had been shot and transported to the hospital. Jacob Rivera was shot 9 times and died as a result of his wounds. A woman was shot in the leg and she was treated at the hospital. She later told detectives she was smoking Fentanyl in an alleyway with Rivera when they were shot. Another witness told detectives there was disturbance over the price of Fentanyl before the shooting occurred.
A witness told detectives that an acquaintance of “Memphis” recognized Rivera as the person who shot him in the leg on Jan. 31, 2024 at a Pizza Hut. “Memphis” took a .380 caliber handgun and shot Rivera several times. The witness said “Memphis” and the acquaintance met up later at the Adam Food Market, located at 7817 Pennsylvania N.W. “Memphis” allegedly said, “I am a real shooter. To be an example, you gotta lead by example.”
Detectives obtained video surveillance and other phone evidence that placed Valenzuela-Greene, Jr., at the location of the shooting and at the Adam Food Market following the shooting. Ballistics evidence also connected the gun used in the shooting to the Jan. 31 shooting of Valenzuela-Green’s acquaintance, and to another incident at the Adam Food Market where the acquaintance shot a dog in the face.
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
Location: 237 Pennsylvania St NE
Victim: Lawrence Zamora, 29
Synopsis: Officers responded to a shots fired call at 9:37 a.m. reported at 237 Pennsylvania St NE. The ShotSpotter system indicated 5 shots fired on the west side of a residential structure that faces Dallas St. Officers located the victim, Lawrence Zamora, with multiple gunshot wounds. He was transported to a hospital where he died as a result of his wounds.
Video surveillance showed Zamora and another individual talking with two individuals, just before one of the individuals aimed his handgun and started shooting at Zamora. Detectives later identified Valenzuela-Greene, Jr., as the suspect who shot Zamora.
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
Location: Twisters parking lot at 2107 Menaul Blvd., N.E.
Victim: Donte Barnes, 31
Synopsis: Officers were dispatched to a shooting at Twisters Restaurant located at 2103 Menaul Blvd., N.E. The victim, Donte Barnes, was transported to a hospital, but died as a result of his wounds. Through interviews, detectives determined the offender approached the victim who was standing at the far NW corner of the parking lot. It is unknown what was said between the two, but multiple shots were fired at the victim causing him to collapse. The shooter then ran around the east side of Twisters before fleeing back to the west down Menaul. The victim was transported to a hospital where he died as a result of his wounds.