Prosecutors Reveal Possible Motive In Las Cruces Realtor Murder Investigation
During a news conference Thursday afternoon, Doa Ana County sheriff’s investigators revealed what led them to the suspect charged in the death of a 62-year-old Las Cruces real estate agent and what kind of evidence connects the man to the crime scene.
Mario A. Mendez, 25, is accused of killing Jack L. Hadley nearly two weeks ago at Hadley’s upscale home and setting fire to the bedroom where the body was found. Mendez was arrested on suspicion of capital murder, first-degree kidnapping, aggravated burglary with a deadly weapon, arson, tampering with evidence, larceny and disposing of stolen property. Judge Richard Silva has ordered Mendez to be held without bond.
Deputies were called to the scene of a fire Sept. 23 in the 5600 block of Camino Esdcondida after fire crews discovered Hadley’s body.
“When a case doesn’t get solved immediately, it allows time for people to speculate, to worry about their community,” said District Attorney Amy Orlando during the news conference. “We have the right man. We arrested the suspect and have charged him.”
Orlando said Hadley’s killing did not appear to be a hate crime or specifically targeted in any way.
“It really seems to be a home invasion, a burglary, that got interrupted and sadly Mr. Hadley got killed because of that,” said Orlando.
According to court documents, Mendez left Las Cruces shortly after the killing. In an interview with investigators, Mendez’s mother said her son was looking to leave town in a hurry shortly after the killing. Prosecutors said Mendez made it all the way to California before coming back to New Mexico. He was arrested at a Deming gas station Tuesday.
Investigators said they found key pieces of evidence when they searched Mendez’s home and his car. In Mendez’s home, they said they found a journal with annotations relating to a killing or killings in the Las Alturas area and a gun case for a 9 mm gun that matched up to the same caliber of bullet casings that were found at the scene of the Hadley murder.
In Mendez’s car, investigators said they found lighter fluid, fuel, latex gloves and a computer hard drive like one that was stolen from Hadley’s home.
According to court documents, during an interview with investigators Mendez confessed to killing Hadley and a number of other crimes associated with the death.
Link:Complete news conference with Dona Ana District Attorney Amy Orlando.
