Police say pair of Las Cruces shootings that hurt 2 are connected

UPDATE, Aug. 30: A pair of weekend shootings, initially reported as separate incidents, are connected with both victims having actually been shot at the same location, Las Cruces police said Monday.

Investigators said they determined the victims, whom they identified as a 42-year-old man and 15-year-old boy, were both wounded by gunfire that occurred early Saturday in the 1800 block of Payne Street. That's where the man was found with gunshot wounds to his face, neck and chest.

Police said the injured boy showed up a short time later at a home in the 800 block of Foster Road, although he was wounded at the same Payne Street spot where the man was discovered.

The two victims remained hospitalized Monday at University Medical Center in El Paso; although their injuries were serious, police indicated both were expected to survive.

No arrests had been in the case thus far and authorities asked anyone who may have information about the shootings to call Las Cruces police at (575) 526-0795.

ORIGINAL REPORT, Aug. 28: LAS CRUCES, New Mexico -- A pair of separate shootings early Saturday morning in Las Cruces left a man and a teenager critically wounded, with each being flown to an El Paso hospital for treatment.

Both shootings took place shortly after midnight, taking place about 20 minutes apart.

Police indicated the first shooting happened at 12:10 a.m. in the 1800 block of Payne, where officers found a 38-year-old man who was shot multiple times in the face and torso.

The second shooting occurred about 12:30 a.m. in the 800 block of Foster, where a 15-year-old boy was shot in what police described as the "lower extremities."

Because of the severity of their injuries, both victims were transported to University Medical Center at El Paso for hospitalization.

As of Saturday afternoon, no arrests had been reported by police for either shooting.