A weekend encounter outside a home west of Las Cruces ended in the shooting death of a 28-year-old Las Cruces man. Doña Ana County Sheriff’s detectives say the man suspected in his murder is in custody.
Deputies were called to the 700 block of Long River Lane, just off Bamert Road, at approximately 1:20 p.m. on Saturday. When they arrived, they reportedly saw a man in a black t-shirt kneeling over another man lying on the ground who appeared to be unconscious.
The man in the t-shirt was later identified as Rueben P. Moralez, 25. Moralez reportedly lived in the home on Long River Lane. Moralez was arrested and charged with one open count of murder. He is currently being held without bond at the Doña Ana County Government Center.
The victim on the ground was identified as Michael R. Kassis. Detectives said he had been shot multiple times in the torso. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to Moralez, he and Kassis had known each other since last year. He told detectives they regularly got together to play video games and eat pizza. Moralez also told detectives Kassis allegedly sold him marijuana on about 10 occasions.
During questioning, Moralez said that Kassis had recently started to pressure him to buy more illicit drugs, like methamphetamine and cocaine. Moralez said Kassis had gone so far as to send “threatening text messages” to his phone and called him persistently.
Moralez also said that Kassis had threatened to shoot him and his family. He reportedly told another friend that he was in fear of the threats Kassis had made toward him, and obtained an AR-15 style pistol from the friend.
Detectives learned from Moralez that he had reportedly missed a call from Kassis earlier Saturday morning. Sometime after noon on Saturday, Moralez saw Kassis in his vehicle in Moralez’s driveway. Kassis then reportedly went to an RV on the property, demanding that Moralez come out. He then reportedly opened the door to Moralez’s Honda that was parked on the property. As he was walking from the vehicle toward the front of Moralez’s home, Moralez allegedly fired a weapon toward Kassis.
The investigation into Saturday’s incident led detectives to the discovery of an AR-15 style pistol that was reportedly on the table inside Moralez’s home.
Detectives say Kassis appeared to be unarmed.
Information from Dona Ana County