Ex-GOP New Mexico candidate Solomon Pena visited homes before shooting rampage: Report

Ryan King

January 17, 01:29 PM January 17, 01:29 PM

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Defeated New Mexico state House contender Republican Solomon Pena visited the homes of Democratic officials before he allegedly orchestrated shootings there, according to two victims.

Pena was apprehended Monday by Albuquerque police following a standoff and allegedly served as the “mastermind” in a conspiracy to orchestrate at least four shootings at the homes and businesses of two state legislators and two Bernalillo County commissioners between Dec. 4 to Jan. 5, according to police. He allegedly hired four men to carry out the attacks, but ultimately, no one died.

FORMER GOP CANDIDATE ARRESTED IN SHOOTINGS AT ALBUQUERQUE DEMOCRATS’ HOMES

“Pena came to my house right after the (November) election. He was sort of erratic in the points he was trying to make about the election, and about how many doors he knocked on and how the number of votes didn’t match,” Bernalillo County Commissioner Adriann Barboa told NBC.

Barboa recounted that Pena was a fervent denier of the 2020 election results and was forceful with her. She later called the police about the encounter and someone fired eight shots at her house on Dec. 4. She was the first of the four known politicians who were believed to be targeted, per NBC.

Another Democrat, former County Commissioner Debbie O’Malley, also recalled an “unsettling” experience with Pena weeks prior to the shooting on her home, which took place on Dec. 11 and entailed about a dozen shots.

“This guy came to my home. I was very concerned about it and it was very unsettling. He was angry about losing the election,” she told the news outlet. “He felt the election was unfair and untrue.”

Officers discovered two handguns in a vehicle owned by Pena during a traffic citation on Jan. 3 and concluded that the gun appeared to have been used in the attack near the home of state Sen. Linda Lopez (D) nearly 40 minutes before the traffic stop, according to police.

Additionally, a bullet casing matched the ones found outside House Speaker Javier Martinez’s (D) home on Dec. 8, per police.

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Officials noted that Pena attributed his loss to election fraud and confronted various local officials about it in the days that followed his November defeat. Authorities surmised that Pena may have been driven to orchestrate the alleged scheme after losing his election challenge against incumbent state Rep. Miguel Garcia (D) by about 74% to 26%.

Pena was previously arrested, according to state records. His record includes multiple charges in 2007 for burglary and larceny. He was also ordered to receive treatment for substance abuse. As a result of his conviction, Pena was barred from voting until 2021, when he finished his probation, according to NBC.