73-year-old dies after stabbing outside smoke shop, NM cops say. Now brothers charged

A man was arrested after being accused of fatally stabbing a 73-year-old outside a dispensary, New Mexico officials said.

The man’s brother is also wanted on charges related to the stabbing, according to a Feb. 7 news release by the Albuquerque Police Department.

On Jan. 27, Fred Tapia was in a truck being driven by his friend when they saw two men, later identified as Antonio Secatero, 25, and Jesus Secatero, 24, and a woman in the road in front of Breaking Bud smoke shop, police said.

When Tapia and his friend got out of the truck, the brothers accused the driver of trying to run them over, officials said. The driver later told police he drove around the men.

A verbal argument ensued, and one of the brothers kicked Tapia in the chest, causing him to be knocked down, police said.

Then a physical fight started, and the driver of the truck attempted to grab a pipe from his truck but tripped and fell, officials said. That’s when one of the brothers is accused of stabbing him in the arm and stomach.

The brothers were seen on security footage approaching the driver and Tapia “in a hostile manner”, but the stabbing was not caught on camera, officials said.

However, surveillance footage did catch the brothers “making motions consistent with downward stabs toward the area where the driver” was, officials said.

Both Tapia and the driver were transported to a hospital for their stab wounds, police said.

Tapia died as a result of wounds to his lungs, officers said.

Police didn’t specify the driver’s condition.

During the investigation, detectives sent photos of the security footage to Albuquerque police officers, and a cadet in the police academy was able to identify the suspects from when he worked at a nonprofit health clinic, the release said.

Jesus Secatero has been arrested, police said.

Police didn’t specify if Antonio Secatero was in custody as of Feb. 8.

The brothers were charged with murder, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and conspiracy, police said.

This story was originally published February 8, 2024 at 5:00 PM with the headline "73-year-old dies after stabbing outside smoke shop, NM cops say. Now brothers charged."