A ‘NIGHTMARE’ REVISITED
Documentary delves into the unsolved Las Cruces bowling alley shootings
Las Cruces forever changed on Feb. 10, 1990. It was when two men walked into a Las Cruces bowling alley and shot seven people execution style — including four children. The pair robbed the bowling alley’s safe and set the business on fire.
The pair were gone from the area before authorities arrived.
Four people died inside the bowling alley — a fifth person years later.
The case remains unsolved.
As the 33rd anniversary rolls around, filmmaker Charlie Minn will be screening the 2011 Lionsgate documentary, “A Nightmare in Las Cruces,” at Icon Cinema, at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 8, and Thursday, Feb. 9. It will also screen at 7 p.m. both days at Icon Cinema (San Mateo).
Minn will be joined by Anthony Teran for a Q&A session after the film.
Teran’s family members — brother and two nieces — were killed in the shootings and has been raising awareness for the film, as well as the case.
He was a student at New Mexico State University at the time of the shootings.
“We decided to play the film in Albuquerque in hopes that it would spark interest,” Minn says. “The documentary is a platform to remind people of the slayings and that the case remains unsolved.”
Minn created the film in 2011, just after the 20th anniversary of the event.
“There’s a new detective on the case and they are still waiting on DNA,” Minn says. “This case should be solved by now. You see other cold cases and they are getting solved. I can’t help but ask, ‘Why isn’t this solved? It is corruption?’ It doesn’t make sense that this mass shooting is unsolved.”
Minn says the case appearing in a trio of podcasts has renewed interest into the case.
“New Mexico and people are curious what the outcome will be,” Minn says. “It’s important to keep the case on the radar so that it will be solved.”
Minn says Teran comes to New Mexico around the anniversary to raise awareness about the case.
“He’s been trying to be as active as possible,” Minn says. “There were no cameras back then. Anthony has been a trooper in making sure the case gets solved.”