Police in Albuquerque, New Mexico, announced that they have arrested a 21-year-old man suspected of fatally shooting his stepmother during a charter school graduation ceremony.
The shooting happened Wednesday at the Albuquerque Convention Center just after 5 p.m.police Said It was initially believed to be a gunman and they were called to the venue, but when police arrived it was “determined to be a single shot fired by a single individual.”
A woman was taken to the hospital with injuries, but her injuries are not life-threatening.
Christian Bencomo, 21, was arrested and charged with aggravated assault causing great bodily harm, aggravated assault and two counts of unlawful possession of a deadly weapon, according to online jail records. It is not clear whether he has hired a lawyer.
Police announced that a graduation ceremony will be held for the Southwest Secondary Learning Center. Stepmother was attending her son's graduation ceremony. When her son-in-law arrived and she began to hug him, he pulled out a gun and shot her in the neck, authorities said.
“As you can imagine, there was a lot of chaos at the time, and it will take some time for detectives to track down potential witnesses,” police said at a news conference.
The motive for the shooting remains unclear.