New Mexico woman suspected in 2023 murder arrested at Kansas City airport
A New Mexico woman was arrested by Kansas City International Airport police Saturday on a 2023 warrant for murder in Albuquerque.
Police in Albuquerque said they linked Marisa Chavez to the May 2023 killing of a man there, and a warrant was issued for her arrest on an open count of murder and a conspiracy to commit first-degree murder charge, according to court documents.
Chavez was arrested by law enforcement at the Kansas City International Airport on Saturday, according to Platte County jail records. Spokespersons for the airport and Albuquerque police did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday, and the circumstances of Chavez’s arrest were not clear.
Chavez is being held without bond. In a Monday hearing in Platte County Circuit Court, Chavez declined to waive her extradition rights for transportation back to New Mexcio, and another hearing was set for Aug. 12, according to court records.
Police were called to a residence in Albuquerque on May 24, 2023, after the mother of the shooting victim, identified as Adam Duarte, heard a series of shots at her home. She said she had seen two people, a man and a woman, at the door of her son’s home on her property, and when she was on the phone, she heard about 10 gunshots and knew he had been shot.
Officers found the man in his home in a puddle of his own blood. Casings and bullet holes were located throughout the residence where he was shot, according to police.
The Albuquerque Journal reported in December that another person, Bryan Perello, had been charged in Duarte’s death as well.
Citing court documents, the Journal reported that a friend of Duarte told police that Duarte had “exchanged words” with Perello and a friend of Perello’s at an adult entertainment club on the night of the shooting and that Perello’s friend allegedly owed Duarte a large sum of money over drugs.
This story was originally published August 5, 2025 at 3:23 PM.
