Day 2 of testimony in Jacqueline Vigil’s murder trial

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The trial for Luis Talamantes-Romero continued Wednesday. He is the man accused of killing Jacqueline Vigil in her own driveway in November 2019.

On Wednesday morning, a friend of the suspect’s sister took the stand. Karla Aguirre spoke about Talamantes-Romero’s confession and their trip to San Antonio following the murder. She established her relationship with Talamantes-Romero and his sister, Elizabeth.

During her testimony, Aguirre said she was friends with Elizabeth during the time of the murder and actually moved into her front house. She also said she was involved in a casual romantic relationship with Talamantes-Romero and frequently saw Isaac Ramirez hanging out with him.

Aguirre said on November 19, she remembers both Talmantes-Romero and Ramirez coming back to the house two hours after the fatal shooting.

Aguirre also talked about the trip to San Antonio they took later that day. She said Talamantes-Romero and his sister disassembled a gun on the way there, and on the way back, his sister threw the pieces out of the window in San Antonio. Aguirre said before the three left for San Antonio, Ramirez convinced Talamantes-Romero to tell them what actually happened.

“At the time he had a lot of adrenaline, and then later when we were talking, he told me what happened – he had calmed down some,” said an interpreter on behalf of Aguirre. “He was more aware of what he had done.”

During that cross-examination, the defense questioned Aguirre about the way back to New Mexico. She said Talamantes-Romero was not in the car and did not take part in throwing pieces of the gun out the window. She also said she was threatened to come along on the trip, and it seemed as if his sister, Elizabeth, was in charge during that time.

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