Community mourns 16-year-old killed in weekend homicide

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A New Mexico motorcycle community is mourning the loss of one of their youngest members, 16-year-old Thomas Nunn. He was found dead in a field Sunday morning, then Saturday afternoon friends and family gathered on Civic Plaza to honor his memory.

Nunn’s Mother, Lyla Garcia, spoke out for the first time in front of hundreds of motorcyclists gathered in downtown Albuquerque for their annual bike day meeting

“It was very hard to come today,” she said, wiping a tear from her face. “Even though this is a tragedy I want to keep his memory alive and all the good stuff he has done for all the communities he has been involved in all the motorcycle clubs and motorcycle community he was involved in a lot of charity work and that is what I want to remember him by.”

She thanked the crowd for their support and kind words and after she stepped off-stage, she shared more memories of her son with KOB 4.

“He and I rode so well together, he was my little sidekick you know and I’m going to miss that and having him on the back of my bike,” Garcia said.

Then on Sunday, Garcia received a message no mother wants to hear.

“I was just waiting for him to come home that night he’s always home by 10 and he wasn’t home we were calling him and then when they came I knew,” Garcia paused, “It was just heart break cause I couldn’t wrap my head around it. I can’t wrap my head around it I miss him but I’m trying to stay positive,” said Garcia.

One way she is staying positive is by finding comfort in hearing what her son meant to those around him.

“He was the type of kid who would walk in to a room and light up the whole place,” Nunn’s coworker Maria Dost said.

“Thomas was always there for me, it doesn’t matter what time it what I could call him and he’d be there for me,” Childhood friend Gage Baca explained.

“If you were having a bad day, he would always make you laugh,” coworker Chrislyn Marquez said.

As Garcia continues to mourn the loss of her son, she said she’ll remember the good times they shared.

“It’s just hard to think about to think about what he went through but you know what as long as we can remember his heart his smile his goofiness and the way he made everyone laugh that is what I want to remember him by and I hope they find who did it I really hope they do so they bring them to justice,” Garcia said.

The Nunn and Garcia family will be giving their son’s remains his “last ride” Friday afternoon.