A man from Albuquerque, New Mexico, has been taken into custody after allegedly murdering his mother and storing her dismembered body in a freezer, according to recent reports.
Legal documents reveal that 49-year-old Leroy Vallejos was detained at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center on Wednesday. He faces charges including first-degree murder, battery, assaulting a household member, and tampering with evidence. Vallejos remains in custody under preventative detention.
The Albuquerque Police Department stated that Vallejos confessed to an officer about strangling his 69-year-old mother, Ernestina Lucero, nearly three weeks prior, as reported by KRQE in Albuquerque.
Authorities reported that Vallejos accused his mother of being part of a “group of people giving their lives to darkness” who were allegedly plotting against him.
According to court records, Vallejos, aged 49, was officially booked into the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center on October 29, 2025, charged with the gruesome act of killing and dismembering his mother, aged 69.
Police reportedly visited Lucero’s residence for a welfare check last Tuesday after Vallejos informed a healthcare company about his mother’s week-long disappearance. He allegedly contacted the company seeking payment for her care despite claiming not to have seen her.
During the welfare check, Vallejos let officers inside and told them his mother had gone to Mexico. But as they looked around, officers reportedly found Lucero’s prescriptions still in her bedroom.
A general overall aerial view of the downtown Albuquerque skyline on Feb. 16, 2024 in Albuquerque, N.M. (Kirby Lee/Getty Images)
One officer allegedly found garbage bags inside a large freezer that were later determined to contain the remains of a female, the station reported.
The discovery led to another search of the home, where officers found a saw with what appeared to be dried blood stains under a sink.
Leroy Vallejos, 49, was booked into the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center on Oct. 29, 2025, after being charged with killing and dismembering his 69-year-old mother, according to court records. (iStock)
Before the welfare check, another family member reportedly told police Lucero was missing, prompting the department to issue a missing person bulletin on Oct. 23 and launch an investigation.
A preliminary investigation found that Vallejos allegedly withdrew money from his mother’s account, and her vehicle was reportedly sold before she was reported missing.
The Albuquerque Police Department did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for additional information on the matter.
The investigation remains ongoing.
