A New Mexico mother who killed her daughter's boyfriend and tried to get her teen son to take the fall for the crime has pleaded guilty to murder charges.
Elizabeth Ortiz-Chavez, 49, pled guilty to second-degree murder in the March 2022 shooting death of Josue Ruiz. Ortiz-Chavez faces up to 18 years in prison.
"Ortiz-Chavez tried to blame her son for the murder because he's a juvenile, and she believed he would face a lesser sentence," a statement from prosecutors reads.
The events unfolded after a confrontation between Ortiz-Chavez's son, Angelo Baldonado, 17, and Ruiz. Ruiz was dating Baldonado's sister, KRQE-13 reported.
The confrontation happened at a diner and Baldonado and Ruiz went into an alley to fight. It was then that shots were fired and Ruiz was killed, the TV station reported.
Baldonado was initially arrested for murder, but witnesses began to come forward, pointing the finger at Ortiz-Chavez. Eventually, Baldonado told police he'd been set up to take the fall by his mother, KRQE-13 reported.
Baldonado eventually pled guilty to conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and to assault with the intent to commit a felony.
