Two brothers accused of shooting a man to death on June 9 on a North Central Regional Transit District Blue Bus in Ranchos de Taos are being held pending a dangerousness and preliminary hearing, while a third man, who allegedly drove the shooter to the bus stop, is also being held without bail.
Taos County prosecutors have filed to have Martin Palomino, 24, and Sijifredo Palomino, 22, held without bail pending trial on grounds that they are a danger to the community, following the fatal shooting of Leroy Rodriguez, 40.
Prosecutors are also seeking to have Jonathan Morales, 25, who allegedly drove Martin Palomino to the scene, held without bail as a danger to the community.
A combined preliminary and dangerousness hearing for the Palomino brothers is set for June 30, while Morales’s hearing was set for June 24.
Taos County Deputy Kevin McCarty wrote in affidavits for arrest warrants for Martin and Sijifredo Palomino that he identified Martin Palomino as the shooter based on video footage taken by multiple Blue Buses and Sijifredo Palomino as the driver and person who was stalking Rodriguez prior to the shooting.
Martin Palomino is charged with first-degree murder, shooting at or from a vehicle resulting in death and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
Sijifredo Palomino is charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and resisting arrest. His charge states that he “helped, encouraged, or caused Martin Palomino to commit the First Degree Murder (Willful and Deliberate) of Leroy Rodriguez.”
Morales is charged with first-degree murder, under the theory he “helped, encouraged, or caused Martin Palomino to commit the First Degree Murder (Willful and Deliberate) of Leroy Rodriguez” and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
The shooting
McCarty pieced together the events mostly through surveillance footage. A person presumed to be Sijifredo Palomino, based on clothing, was seen on surveillance footage following Rodriguez when he got onto the North Central Regional Transit District bus in front of Ziggy’s Frozen Yogurt, on Paseo del Pueblo Sur, and following the bus in a white Chevy Silverado, until it arrived at the Ranchos de Taos post office.
Morales is seen driving a black Mercedes into the post office parking lot and his passenger, alleged to be Martin Palomino, got out and into the white truck, which then drove across the parking lot.
Then Martin Palomino allegedly got out, walked to the rear of the bus, pointed a handgun at the rear window and shot three times, shooting Rodriguez in the head. Martin Palomino then ran away, headed east, before getting back into the truck and leaving the area.
Deputies then stopped a Chevrolet Malibu on June 11, which they believed to be driven by Martin Palomino, but was actually driven by his brother, who looks like him.
They arrested Sijifredo Palomino. Martin Palomino turned himself in on June 12. Morales was arrested that day and was first identified in surveillance footage.
Court documents do not list a motive for the killing.