Valencia County teenager charged with four counts of murder

As New Mexico State Police continue to investigate a quadruple homicide at a home in southwest Valencia County, a local fire department mourns the loss of one of its own.

Adriana Bencomo, 35, was one of four people allegedly killed by her son, Diego Leyva, 16, in the early morning hours of Saturday, Dec. 14.

Bencomo served her community as a volunteer firefighter for the Rio Communities Fire Department for more than 15 years. A message on the Valencia County Fire Department’s Facebook page on behalf of RCFD reads, “Our brothers and sisters at RCFD are shocked and saddened by this loss…”

The message also states VCFD is acting as the liaison for the Rio Communities department at this time.

VCFD Chief Matt Propp said most members of the Rio Communities and Valencia County fire departments knew Bencomo and worked with her at some point.

“Any responder in the county who has been here for a while knew her. This has a huge impact on the community and our responders as well,” Propp said.

When the call went out Saturday morning, the RCFD crew on duty responded along with an AMR ambulance, the chief said.

“They put the pieces together pretty quickly about who was at the residence,” he said. “Because this is such a big impact on the agency, we have brought up extra staffing and so has Belen so (RCFD) could take a breather and support each other without having to focus on emergency calls. It is a good testament to the agencies in the county that they all step up when needed.”

The county fire department has activated its peer support team and is working with the Public Safety Psychology Group to provide support to members of the RCFD and other first responders who answered the call.

“We will have a more formal sit-down and debrief on Monday to make sure everyone has access to what they need,” Propp said. “We’ve also reached out to AMR and (the Valencia County Sheriff’s Office) to make sure everybody is included.”

The chief said information has been put out saying the Rio Communities department is the point of contact for assistance to the family. While well-meaning, Propp said there have been no requests made of RCFD to assist with fundraising or funeral arrangements at this time.

“This isn’t the time to call the station. They are going through a lot. They will reach out to the family, but until then Valencia County Fire is acting as the liaison for Rio Communities for any inquiries while they take some time,” he said. “Help is always appreciated but we want to make sure we aren’t overwhelming members of the department. This was their friend.”

The Valencia County Fire Department administrative offices can be reached at 505-866-2040.

Around 3:30 a.m., Saturday, Dec. 14, the Valencia County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call from Diego Leyva,16, who told the dispatcher he had killed his family at his home on Camino Escondido, southwest of the city of Rio Communities in Rio Grande Estates, in an unincorporated part of Valencia County.

When deputies arrived at the home, Diego walked out with his hands in the air and was extremely intoxicated, according to a press release from New Mexico State Police public information officer Officer Ray Wilson. NMSP is heading up the investigation.

Inside the home, deputies found Diego’s father, Leonardo Leyva, 42; mother, Adriana Bencomo, 35; twin brother Adrian Leyva, 16; and brother Alexander Leyva, 14, all dead from suspected gunshot wounds. A handgun was found on the kitchen table.

Diego Leyva was taken into custody without incident. He was taken to an area hospital for detox. After Diego was medically cleared, he was booked into the Juvenile Justice Center in Albuquerque at about 1 a.m., Sunday, Dec. 15. He has been charged with four open counts of first-degree murder in relation to the deaths of his family members.

This incident is in the preliminary stages of investigation. NMSP Investigations Bureau agents and Crime Scene Team are processing the scene and conducting interviews to learn what led up to these tragic events, according to the press release from Wilson.

Once more information is learned and the investigation is complete, it will be presented to the district attorney's office for prosecution.