NM Murder Suspect Has Road Rage Past

The man police say confessed to the shocking road-rage killing of a 4-year-old girl in Albuquerque, NM, has a long history of criminal charges—including a previous road-rage incident involving a gun—but no history of convictions. In the previous incident, Tony Torrez allegedly pulled a gun on a man in a parking garage in 2006 and was charged after the gun went off during a struggle and his friend was injured, the Albuquerque Journal reports. The charges were dismissed after the victim and a witness failed to cooperate with prosecutors, which appears to be a common theme in nine cases involving Torrez, including a 2008 incident where he allegedly pointed a gun at his girlfriend and asked her if she "wanted to die," the Journal reports. KOB reports that the only case where a charge against Torrez stuck was a parking ticket.

Torrez appeared in court Thursday on several charges, including murder, child abuse resulting in death, and tampering with evidence, CNN reports. He's being held on $650,000 bond. Court documents revealed more details of the shooting that the judge called one of the "most wanton and atrocious acts in the history of this city," per the Journal. Alan Garcia, father of 4-year-old Lilly, told police that he was on his way to the grocery store on Tuesday with his two children when a car crossed two lanes of traffic in front of him and blocked his exit. Garcia told police that he swore at the other driver, who shot at his truck several times, killing his daughter with at least one shot to the head. A GoFundMe page in honor of Lilly has raised more than $70,000, reports KOB. (More Albuquerque stories.)