16-year-old arrested over quadruple homicide: New Mexico police

• A 16-year-old boy in New Mexico is in custody for allegedly killing his family.
• The victims were the suspect’s parents and two brothers, found with gunshot wounds.
• The teen faces four counts of first-degree murder. A handgun was found at the scene.

A 16-year-old boy in the American state of New Mexico is in custody after an alleged quadruple homicide of his family members, officials say.

The Valencia County Sheriff’s Office received an emergency call on Sunday from a male minor “who told the dispatcher he had killed his family,” New Mexico state police said in a statement.

When deputies arrived at the home, in the city of Belen, the 16-year-old “walked out of the residence with his hands in the air and was extremely intoxicated”.

“Deputies entered the residence to find Leonardo Leyva, 42, Adriana Bencomo, 35, Adrian Leyva, 16, and Alexander Leyva, 14, all deceased from suspected gunshot wounds. A handgun was located on the kitchen table,” state police said.

A Belen official said the victims were the suspect’s parents and two brothers.

The teen has been charged on suspicion of four counts of first-degree murder, police said.

Fatal shootings are tragically common occurrences in the United States, where gun laws are relatively lax and firearms outnumber people.

This year, there have been at least 484 mass shootings – defined as a shooting involving at least four victims, dead or wounded – across the US, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

© Agence France-Presse