3 plead guilty to federal firearms charges in Las Cruces school zone shooting case
LAS CRUCES, N.M. (KVIA) -- Three men pleaded guilty to federal firearm charges after September 2025 shooting near Hermosa Heights Elementary School and Young Park in Las Cruces.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Mexico, John Anthony Orta, 24, Steven Mendoza, 22, and Luis Angel Ruiz, 23, pleaded guilty.
Court records said it happened Sept. 6, 2025. Police received reports about shots fired and found shell casings in the Young Park parking lot.
Police later found John Anthony Orta, 24, and Steven Mendoza, 22, walking near Hermosa Heights Elementary with loaded guns, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
They both pleaded guilty to knowingly carrying firearms in a school zone and within 540 feet of school property. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the men were also intoxicated and initially arrested for negligent use of a deadly weapon.
Orta received a six-month prison sentenced followed by three years of supervised release.
Mendoza faces up to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
Upon further investigation, authorities used search warrants to look through Orta and Mendoza's cell phones. They found social media messages talking about the shooting, officials said.
Within the messages, they found a third suspect, 23-year-old Luis Angel Ruiz, who reportedly fired the shots at Young Park, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Investigators came to this conclusion through witness statements and social media posts of Ruiz with the gun was used as evidence.
(Courtesy: U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico)
(Courtesy: U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico)
On Sept. 24, 2025, Las Cruces police stopped Ruiz for traffic violations and arrested him for driving under the influence, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. During the stop, officers found four firearms in the vehicle.
Ruiz admitted the guns belonged to him and later admitted he knew one of the gun's serial number had been obliterated, officials said. Investigators also found social media messages of Ruiz trying to sell the firearm, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
Ruiz pleaded guilty to discharging a firearm in a school zone and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
He faces up to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
