An Ojo Caliente man is being held without bail on charges including kidnapping, after he allegedly had his son close a gate to his property before he grabbed a gun and allegedly opened fire on his neighbor who went onto his property to warn him about entering his property.
District Judge Jason Lidyard ordered Anthony Rivera, 54, held without bail following a combined preliminary and dangerousness hearing on June 4 and 5, where he also bound him over on charges of kidnapping, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and felon in possession of a firearm.
Lidyard wrote in the order to have Rivera held without bail pending trial that there was enough evidence that a crime of violence had been committed.
District Judge Louis McDonald arraigned him on June 20. A pre-trial conference is set for Aug. 4.
New Mexico State Police Officer Ashlea Lujan wrote in a criminal complaint for Rivera’s arrest that she took a report from Rivera, who came to the State Police office on May 18.
Richard Marquez, 55, told Lujan that he found Rivera on his property early that morning, the day of the shooting. He told Rivera to stay off his property and said that Rivera lives nearby and is “often scoping out the property,” Lujan wrote.
At 5 p.m., Marquez went to Rivera’s property, driving through an open gate, and told Rivera to stay off his property. Rivera then told his son to close the gate behind Marquez as he went back into his house and came back out holding a pistol, Lujan wrote.
Marquez got into his car and drove away and Rivera shot at his car, hitting it at least once. He drove through the closed gate, damaging his vehicle. Before Marquez filed his report, Rivera called police to report that Marquez drove through his gate, Lujan wrote.
Held without bail
As the reason for holding Rivera without bail, Lidyard wrote he has a history of failing to appear for court hearings.
“The biggest concern to the Court is how the Defendant decides to conduct himself on his own property,” he wrote.
One incident report detailed how officers went to his property to arrest his son on a warrant and he allegedly sicced his dogs on officers and when they tried to arrest him, he appeared to reach for a chair, before officers shot him with a stun gun.
“In the above-captioned case, the victim comes to the Defendant’s property, not threatening violence, but only to argue about an on-going issue in the neighborhood,” Lidyard wrote. “Instead of responding with words, the Defendant commands that the gate be closed, retrieves a gun, and fires at the victim. This occurred while the Defendant had a bench warrant for failing to appear in a traffic case.”
Confining Rivera to his home isn’t an option as all of the “concerning incidents” have happened at his house, Lidyard wrote.
“If something happens around the Defendant that the Defendant finds undesirable, the Defendant will act out violently,” he wrote.