Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina describes Pena as the 'mastermind' of what he says appears to be a politically motivated conspiracy with four other men leading to shootings at homes of Democratic lawmakers.
A failed Republican candidate who authorities said was angry over his defeat and made baseless claims the election last November was "rigged" against him was arrested in connection with a series of drive-by shootings targeting the homes of Democratic lawmakers in New Mexico's largest city.
Solomon Pena, 39, was arrested Monday evening, just hours after SWAT officers took him into custody and served search warrants at his home, police said. Pena ran unsuccessfully in November against incumbent state Rep. Miguel P. Garcia, the longtime Democrat representing House District 14 in the South Valley. Garcia won by 48 percentage points, or roughly 3,600 votes.
Detectives identified Pena as their key suspect using a combination of cellphone and vehicle records, witness interviews and bullet casings collected at the lawmakers' homes, police said. His arrest came one week after Medina announced they had identified a suspect in the shootings.No one was injured in the shootings, which unfolded amid a rise in threats to members of Congress, school board members, election officials and other government workers around the nation.
Investigators received a break in the case after technology that can detect the sound of gunfire led an officer to Lopez's neighborhood shortly after the shots were fired.
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