FBI doubles reward for info on Taos Pueblo double homicide
Nearly two years after father and son Antonio and Buck Romero were murdered in their home at Taos Pueblo, the FBI is still seeking help from the public, and has doubled the reward money.
FBI public affairs officer Frank Fisher said the reward has been increased from $5,000 to $10,000 for “information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the homicides.”
The father and son were found dead June 1, 2019, in Buck Romero’s home where they both resided. According to a police report obtained by the Taos News in 2019, officers from the Taos Pueblo Department of Public Safety arrived at the Romero residence on Goat Springs Road after being called to perform a welfare check on the Romeros when they hadn’t been heard from in over a day.
According to Fisher, the FBI – who joined the investigation shortly after the Romeros were found – has received “numerous tips and conducted numerous interviews.” He said the investigation is still very much considered “active” and he believes they have several strong leads. “But we need the public’s help for us to finally solve this case.”
Fisher added that “anyone who is harboring the person or persons who committed these homicides, anyone who is sheltering them, who’s helping them to evade justice, can also be held to account.”
The FBI is working closely with the Taos Pueblo Department of Public Safety to follow leads. Currently, the cause of death is not being released.
When the tragic event unfolded in 2019, it came as a shock to the community. Antonio, 82, was a spiritual leader and skilled carpenter, and Buck, 51, was known for his outgoing and friendly manner, according to a family member who chose to remain anonymous.
The family member recalled Buck as “very outgoing … very friendly, in many ways, and very gentle.” She also remembered his love of animals, of which he had several. In particular, she recalled Buck’s puppy, Pumpkin, who he would bring down to Española secretly on the Blue Bus. “Just a week before he passed, the little puppy also passed,” she said. “They both went together.”
She said another dog Buck had kept trying to search for him after his death. “[The dog] would always try and run back to his master’s house. But eventually he would come back and then finally, he just stayed with me. He’s an elderly dog now.”
She also described Buck as a talented artist, welder, cook and avid skier. She remembered Buck’s mother saying at his graveside, “Now you are free to ski anytime you want to.”
The family member described Buck and Antonio as very close, so much that they lived together. “They always gathered wood together or cared for animals. They lived together so like father and son, they took good care of one another,” she said.
Thinking back on Buck and Antonio “brings happy memories as well as sad memories … to the whole family, the mother included,” she said.
“These gentlemen did not deserve this, this shouldn’t have happened,” added Fisher. “The fact that whoever did it is still walking around is the reason we are so committed to solving this case. These two gentlemen deserve justice, their families deserve justice. And we’re not going to stop until we get justice.”
Anyone with information regarding the murder of Buck and Antonio Romero should call 505-889-1300, or can submit tips online at