ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The Albuquerque Police Department announced that they took 11-year-old Messiah Hayes into custody in connection to the death of a bicyclist in 2024. He is too young to be in police custody so he was turned over to the New Mexico Children, Youth, and Families Department.
APD said cell phone video of the crime helped them solve the 2024 murder of 63-year-old Scott Habermehl who was riding his bike to work when he was hit and killed. APD arrested 13-year-old Johnathan Overbay on Monday. APD is still searching for 15-year-old William Garcia.
Albuquerque police said they had contact with Hayes last year and KRQE News 13 covered at least one of those instances. Last May, just twelve days before the murder of Habermehl, police said Hayes and three teenagers crashed a stolen car into the Daily Needs Convenience store on Indian School Rd. After ramming the store twice, they jumped over the counters and grabbed cigarettes and alcohol. The single mother who had her car stolen was devastated to find it destroyed. “I was heartbroken because again this is my only mode of transportation and to see how my car was used…was heartbreaking because I work so hard for what I have,” said the mother in May 2024.
KRQE News 13 does not have Hayes’ birth date, so it’s not clear if Hayes was ten years old at the time or had just turned 11. Police said Hayes was also involved in an incident last year where he shot at a person. KRQE News 13 does not have details of that case. As Albuquerque police searched for Hayes, they said they were concerned that they might have had to use deadly force against an 11-year-old.
APD said Hayes is too young to be charged for murder but they are working with the Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office to see what charges he could face. In the meantime, Hayes will be placed in CYFD custody where he will be given an evaluation.