Murder suspect allegedly built bunker to take kill shot

New Mexico State Police is investigating claims that a Rio Arriba County winery owner facing a murder charge built a bunker on his property that he intended to use to kill a man who he says committed rape.

Timothy Lopez, owner of Wicked Kreations Winery, is accused of fatally shooting Thomas “Derick” Velarde at a gas station in Alcalde during an argument late last month. Lopez, who remains in custody, is charged with first-degree murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Friends of both Velarde, who was 58, and Lopez, 53, told state police that they recalled conversations with Lopez in which he told them Velarde had raped a woman and he planned to “sniper” Velarde from a bunker he allegedly built on the northwest side of his property, according to an affidavit filed in First Judicial District Court earlier this week.