Nehemiah Griego, 18, has pleaded guilty to the killings of five family members because he felt frustrated. Mr. Griego, who was obsessed with violent video games, is facing three life sentences plus 30 years for the brutal murders of his parents – Greg Griego and Sarah Griego – and three young siblings in their New Mexico home.
Nehemiah Griego is set to possibly spend the rest of his life behind bars, and if he believes in reincarnation, in his next lifetime he will still be behind bars.
On Friday, Griego and his lawyers, Jeffrey Buckels and Stephen Taylor, faced Judge John Romero in Children’s Court in Albuquerque, New Mexico where he pleaded guilty to the cold-blooded murder of his entire family including his father, mother, brother and two sisters. He pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder for the deaths of his parents and three counts of child abuse resulting in death for fatally shooting his younger siblings.
The teenager is set to to appear in court in January 2016 for an “amenability hearing” where it will be decided if he will be sentenced as a juvenile or an adult. If he is viewed as a juvenile, he will be committed to the custody of the Children, Youth and Families Department until he is 21 years old. However, if the court deems, he is an adult he could be sent to prison for three life sentences plus 30 years.
Buckels and Taylor said in a statement:
“The parties believe that this agreement is the best resolution for Mr. Griego and the state, as well as for the victims’ family.”
In January of 2012, Mr. Griego, who claimed that he was angry with his mother for being homeschooled, planned the mass shooting for one week. Using a .22 rifle and an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle, the teen first murdered his mother, Sarah Griego, 40, then fatally shot his 9-year-old brother, Zephaniah Griego, and walked into his sisters, Jael, 5, and two-year-old Angelina‘s room where he unloaded his weapon.
According to the police, one of the girls was sleeping while the other one saw her killer coming. At around 1 a.m., he picked up a third weapon and gunned down his father, Greg Griego, 51, a pastor at Calvary Church in Albuquerque, who had just returned home after spending the whole day working at the Albuquerque homeless shelter.
The police claimed that Griego had reloaded his parents’ rifles and put them in a van and planned to kill shoppers and workers at a nearby Walmart store. After being arrested, he showed no emotions regarding his unthinkable actions, but was thrilled to talk about his love for violent video games like Modern Warfare and Grand Theft Auto.
His family released a statement after the killings that explained that they were surprised by Griego’s actions, which they believed were caused by undiagnosed mental issues.
