The bodies of two teenage boys have been found after they went missing from Albuquerque two weeks ago.
In a scene described as "very violent" by the police, the bodies of Collin Romero, 15, and Ahmed Lateef, 14, were found this weekend in a remote area west of Rio Rancho, Daily Mail reports.
Yazmin Al Abdul Aziz, Ahmed's devastated mother, said: "I can't believe... I didn't believe [he had been killed]. Yesterday, [detectives] came and told me what happened. I've been crying in the morning. I can't eat. I can't drink. I’m sad because, my son, somebody killed him. He didn’t die normally; he wasn’t sick. My heart, it’s on fire. I have fire in my heart."
An image of Collin Romero, 15, shared by his mother Amanda Kimbrel.
Speaking to a local TV channel, Collin's mother Amanda Kimbrel said she last saw her son and his friend being beaten in a Snapchat video. "I just want to know that he didn't suffer, and if he is out here, that it was quick," she said.
It is believed that the pair got caught up in a drug deal gone wrong, police said. Speaking to KRQE Media, Lt. Keith Elder of the Sandoval County Sheriff's Office said, "Late last week, we got information that some clothes were out on the West Mesa, west of Rio Rancho."
Following the tip, deputies found the two bodies this weekend in a shallow grave west of Rio Rancho, Lt. Elder confirmed. However, police are not revealing the location of the bodies fearing it could compromise the investigation. It is unclear as to how long the bodies have been out there. "The way things appear right now, it is a very violent scene. We're looking and waiting for OMI to determine cause and manner of death," said. Lt. Elder.
An image of Ahmed Lateef, 14.
While it was clear that the boys did not die of natural causes, police do not have any suspects at the moment, Lt. Elder said. "We want to move forward with this investigation and bring to justice those that perpetrated the crimes," he added. "Our hearts go out to the family members that have lost their loved ones. We hope that they can begin to have some closure."
Albuquerque Police have not confirmed whether the man seen beating the teens in the videos is a suspect, despite his name being posted online by some social media users. That said, in an attempt to get a better idea of where the crime took place, the SCSO is working with Snapchat to get a copy of the video.
According to Collin's mother, the 15-year-old dreamed of working with animals and always looked out for his friends and loved ones. In a conversation with the Albuquerque Journal, their mothers said that the pair spent many days and nights at each other's houses over the years, having been best friends since middle school.
Amanda Kimbrel spoke last week about how it was spending Christmas without her beloved son. "It's just not right to celebrate Christmas with them out here. Christmas doesn't matter to me right now it's not on my priority list," she told KOB4. "I had so many plans for this Christmas. This was the first Christmas I could really afford to do a lot. I had the Christmas tree up and lights, my son always wanted me to do stuff like that but money was always an issue. This is the first time it wasn't and he doesn't get to see any of it," she added.
In the Snapchat video, the boys were allegedly being beaten up somewhere in the West Mesa desert, with Ahmed's phone location last recorded in the area. Several volunteers lined up to search for signs of the boys across the desolate desert on Saturday.
Kimbrel decided not to view the video herself as it was described as "bloody and horrifying in nature." The boys are allegedly covered in blood and are unconscious in the said clip.
She believes police have issued a warrant to Snapchat asking for the footage, but that the video-sharing platform is not cooperating with officers. "They were being beaten very, very brutally, pistol-whipped. Snapchat has this information and they are refusing to hand it over," she said
Kelen Kimbrel, Collin's grandmother, said there's a photo of the boys in the back of a car on social media. "We've been told there's a photo of the boys in the back seat of the car, with a man in the middle holding them as if they are trophies," Kelen told KRQE.
If you would like to help or contribute, the families have set up a Facebook group as well as a GoFundMe page to help cover related expenses.