Four suspects indicted by grand jury in homicide invesigation

Four suspects in a murder investigation in Dona Ana County have been indicted by a grand jury. Damika Childs, 19, Adrian Banda, 24, Alejandro Ruiz, 22, and Gregory Saaverda, 33, were each charged with a laundry list of crimes including first-degree murder, kidnapping and aggravated arson in the murder of Johnny Ramirez, 22. According to investigators, they were responding to a burning vehicle when they discovered Ramirez’s body inside the trunk of a car. The defendants are also accused of kidnapping a second victim and attempting to kill her. Investigators with New Mexico State Police said this victim was duct-taped to the steering wheel of the burning car and stabbed in the neck. However, she managed to escape was airlifted to a hospital in El Paso. The suspects face life in prison if convicted of first-degree murder. All four are being held in the Doña Ana County Detention without bond.