A jury has convicted a man in connection with the June 2024 shooting death of Javon Williams in Albuquerque, more than two years after a dispute sent a group of men to a home near Candelaria and Carlisle. Reshad Jones helped plan the shooting that killed Williams, who was not the intended target, according to investigators.
The shooting unfolded after Jones and a group of men went to a home near Candelaria and Carlisle following a dispute between Jones and one of the residents, as reported by KRQE. One of Jones's friends opened fire at the home, and the gunfire struck and killed Williams, who had no connection to the underlying conflict. KRQE reports that Jones now faces up to life in prison.
According to the Albuquerque Journal, police were dispatched to the shooting on June 18, 2024, in the 3000 block of Aliso NE, near Candelaria and Carlisle. The newspaper's report states that a Bernalillo County jury found Jones guilty of felony murder and conspiracy to commit a shooting at a dwelling or occupied building, while finding him not guilty of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. A separate search summary tied to that same report instead describes the conviction as first-degree murder, and the newspaper and KRQE differ on the spelling of Jones's first name, rendering it as either Reshad or Rashad.
How Investigators Built the Case
The case against Jones leaned heavily on digital evidence. The newspaper's report notes that Albuquerque Police Department investigators relied on cellphone location data, text messages, and social media photos and records to build their case against him.
Jones is the third person convicted in Williams's killing. Per the same report, co-defendants Nathaniel Munguia, 23, and Malakai Nguyen, 21, both pleaded guilty earlier this year to second-degree murder and conspiracy. Two remaining co-defendants, Tarrance Williams and Jacques Dillards, both 24, had yet to stand trial for their alleged roles at the time the Journal's report was published.
A Broader Pattern of Violence That Summer
Investigators believed the groups involved in the June 2024 shooting were responsible for at least five different shootings over the course of three weeks that month, according to KRQE's earlier coverage of a related custody hearing. Police have said the violence allegedly stemmed from an ongoing, escalating social media feud, as reported by KOAT, which also reported that APD arrested and charged Tarrance Williams II as the final suspect connected to the June 18, 2024, shooting death.
The investigation and prosecution have stretched across more than two years, with the latest conviction marking another step toward resolving the case against all of the men accused in Williams's death. With two co-defendants still awaiting trial, the full accounting of who is held responsible for the shooting remains unfinished.
