APD charges two women for drug-related murder in August
ALBUQUERQUE – APD detectives charged two women for the fatal shooting of Adam Morres on the morning of Aug. 22, 2024. Morres, 24, was murdered just hours after he was released from jail.
Katherine Silas, 23, and Samanta Villalba, 27, were arrested Wednesday by federal law enforcement authorities in Los Angeles. Silas and Villalba are each charged with an open count of murder and tampering with evidence.
Police responded to the shooting around 6:30 a.m. on Aug. 22, at 516 Hermosa Dr., S.E. The victim, Morres, was located in the driver’s seat of a silver Toyota vehicle. He had a gunshot wound to the head. Morres was transported to a hospital, but he died as a result of his wounds two days later. Homicide detectives took over the investigation on Aug. 24.
Homicide detectives determined through investigation that Morres knew Silas and Villalba who were involved in drug trafficking. They were indicted in January 2024 in Arizona for trafficking drugs.
Detectives said in a criminal complaint that they believe Morres called Villalba on Aug. 20 when he was arrested and asked her to bring another individual to pick up Morres’s belongings before he was transported to jail. That individual took possession of the belongings, including Morres’s phone.
During the homicide investigation, detectives tracked Morres’s phone, which appeared to be in Villalba’s possession up until the time of the murder.
Detectives determined through investigation that Villalba and Silas were upset with Morres for betraying them at the time of the murder.
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