Who is Solomon Pena? Unsuccessful Republican candidate ARRESTED for shooting up 4 Democratic leaders' homes
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO: Republican candidate Solomon Pena, who ran an unsuccessful legislative campaign in 2022, has been arrested, as per police. Pena, 39, is suspected of being involved in hiring individuals to shoot up the homes of four Democratic leaders, according to information released on Monday, January 16, by the Albuquerque Police Department.
The 39-year-old was identified as the "mastermind" behind the shootings by Albuquerque Police during a press conference on Monday. According to the police, Pena contracted people to execute at least two of the shootings. The authorities think Pena was there and that he shot a weapon at one of the other shootings, reports The Sun.
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APD has arrested Solomon Peña for the recent shootings at local lawmakers’ homes. Peña, an unsuccessful legislative candidate in the 2022 election, is accused of conspiring with, and paying four other men to shoot at the homes of 2 county commissioners and 2 state legislators.
— APD Chief of Police (@ABQPoliceChief) January 16, 2023
"Pena, an unsuccessful legislative candidate in the 2022 election, is accused of conspiring with, and paying four other men to shoot at the homes of two county commissioners and two state legislators," Police Chief Harold Medina stated in a tweet.
Police in Albuquerque were looking into six shootings that took place between December 4 and January 5. According to the Albuquerque Journal, bullets were fired in each case into the houses of Democratically elected officials or close to the offices of others. According to the site, the first incident took place on December 4 and involved eight rounds being fired into County Commissioner Adriann Barboa's residence. After that, on December 11, a total of almost a dozen rounds were fired at County Commissioner Debbie O'Malley's residence.
In December, a shooting incident again happened at the residence of Representative Javier Martinez. The state legislator Linda Lopez's home was the scene of the incident in January. She claims that while her daughter, age 10, slept, bullets were shot into her bedroom.
Who is Solomon Pena?
Pena was arrested on Monday at around 3.30 pm for contracting men to shoot up the homes of 4 Democratic politicians and The Albuquerque Journal claims that the arrest came after a SWAT standoff. Before the man was taken into custody, officers are alleged to have said: "Solomon Pena, please come out with your hands up, we have the place surrounded."
Pena was defeated in the November election by a margin of more than 3,600 votes. In the race for the House District 14 seat, he faced off against Democrat Miguel P Garcia. The Albuquerque Journal adds that Pena was previously detained and found guilty of stealing merchandise from several large box stores as part of a "smash and grab" scheme. He spent nearly seven years behind bars. Garcia challenged Pena's candidacy in court prior to the election to have it disqualified due to Pena's arrest and imprisonment.