ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A shopping trip for Mother’s Day turned into tragedy for an Albuquerque family, when a man gunned down two teens, then turned the gun on himself. Now, the family is suing the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, saying there’s something they could have done.
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“Your life will never be the same after a kid dies,” said Vanessa Salgado, mom of Alexia Rael & aunt of Mario Salgado.
Vanessa Salgado is the mother of Alexia Rael and the aunt of Mario Salgado. She said the two 16-year-olds were full of life. “Lexi Rael was an old soul. She loved vintage things, she loved records…He (Mario) was just such a gentle soul. That kid would never complain about anything. That kid would always put a smile on his face”, said Salgado.
But on May 8, 2022, Rael and Salgado went Mother’s Day shopping at a Party City near Coors and Ellison. That’s when 52-year-old Bradley Wallin, came up to them in the parking lot, pulled out a gun, and shot them both to death, then shot and killed himself.
“Waiting for my daughter to meet me, to have dinner for Mother’s Day and the cops came to the door…told me that my daughter and nephew had been murdered,” said Salgado.
The two teens were murdered by someone Salgado once trusted. Salgado was in a relationship with Wallin until her daughter revealed Wallin had been sexually abusing her for years. Salgado kicked him out of their home and filed a restraining order.
She said she told Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office that Wallin owned two guns, but said they weren’t confiscated. That’s something Salgado’s attorney says violated the state’s Red Flag Law, allowing authorities to confiscate someone’s guns if they pose a threat.
“Mrs. Salgado showed them where the guns were. They could have and were required to file a petition to have those guns taken away and they did not do it,” said Carey Bhalla, attorney at Rothstein Donatelli LLP.
Now, Salgado has filed a lawsuit against BCSO and Bernalillo County. She says had BCSO implemented the law her daughter and nephew could’ve had a chance.
“I’m fighting for you every day. There’s not a moment in time that I don’t think about you guys and what you have lost, the futures you guys have lost, and what you guys could’ve been and I want these laws to change,” said Salgado.
Salgado’s attorney says that after the two teens were killed, investigators learned that Wallin had been stalking Rael. Even renting an apartment less than five minutes away from where Rael was working. KRQE News 13 reached out to BCSO about the lawsuit, but they said they do not comment on pending litigation
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