Hundreds honor 16-year-old Gadsden High student Beto Romero

Hundreds, if not thousands of teammates, family members and friends honored the late 16-year-old Beto Romero in both Las Cruces and Anthony, New Mexico.

“No one – no family – deserves to go through this,” said Gabriel Venegas, a childhood friend.

Adalberto “Beto” Romero IV was a straight ‘A’ student, star Gadsden High athlete and friend to all who knew him.

“We all are in shock,” said Maricruz Anaya, a friend of Beto’s mother.

At 10 a.m. on Wednesday morning, hundreds of people crowded into the chapel of La Paz- Graham’s Funeral Home. With standing room only, almost every square foot of the room occupied.

With a personal escort by New Mexico State Police and the Las Cruces Police Department, Beto’s hearse made its way to a cemetery in Anthony where hundreds of people stood waiting.

“Look at the family; the whole entire community,” Anaya said. “We are suffering for this loss. For this kid. For his mom. For his dad.”

Beto’s former teammates lowered his casket into the earth. The community mourning his loss released maroon and gold balloons to Heaven: a final goodbye for Gadsden High’s lost son.

“It’s going to be hard,” Anaya said.

The man accused of killing Romero, Oscar Anchondo, was granted a $5,000 secured bond only 24 hours before the funeral. Anchondo allegedly told investigators he used meth prior to the incident.

“We want justice,” Anaya said.