Suspect in Clovis murders, kidnapping pleads not guilty
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M – A Texas man accused of killing two women, shooting a child and kidnapping a baby has pleaded not guilty to federal charges.
In federal court, a grand jury indicted Alik Collins on two additional charges. Collins faced a federal judge in Albuquerque Wednesday.
The 26-year-old is accused of shooting and killing Samantha Harley Cisneros and Taryn Allen at Ned Houk Park which is just outside of Clovis.
The FBI and Clovis police say he also shot 5-year-old Sofia, before kidnapping 10-month-old Eleia Maria Torres. Cisneros was both Sofia and Eleia’s mother.
The shooting and kidnapping all happened May 3. Eleia was missing for about three days before police caught up with Collins.
The family’s lawyer told KOB 4 Eleia is OK, and at last check, her half sister Sofia was making progress after getting shot in the head.
Police say Collins has no connection to any of the victims, but he was already on the FBI’s radar.
Court records show last October, Collins had called the FBI National Threat Operations Center saying if the FBI didn’t help him find his daughter, he was going to “murder a bunch of children.”
Authorities tracked Collins through cell phone data and surveillance and ended up arresting the Houston native at a house in Abilene, Texas.
Federal officials say they/he carjacked an Uber driver at gunpoint, put Eleia in the back seat and drove off.
On Wednesday, a grand jury indicted Collins on two charges: kidnapping and a firearm charge. The court document says Collins had a gun during the kidnapping and used it.
The first count of kidnapping is for allegedly taking Eleia across state lines and using a car and a gun to do it. But those are just the federal charges.
In New Mexico, he’s charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of child abuse and one count of kidnapping. So far, no court date has been set.