Albuquerque –
A Houston man faces criminal charges for interstate kidnapping of a child in connection with the double murder of the girl’s mother and another woman in Clovis, New Mexico, as detailed in a criminal complaint.
Alek* Isaiah Collins, aged 26, appeared before a federal judge in Abilene, Texas, this morning following charges detailed in a federal criminal complaint filed in New Mexico. Law enforcement detained Collins on May 6th, and he will remain in the custody of the United States Marshals Service until they transfer him to New Mexico for further legal proceedings.
As outlined in the criminal complaint, at around 4:25 pm on May 3, 2024, the bodies of two deceased individuals, identified as Jane Doe 1 (an adult female) and Jane Doe 2 (also an adult female), were discovered at Ned Houk Memorial Park, located at 700 C R 17, Clovis, New Mexico 88101. Both women were found with multiple gunshot wounds. Additionally, Jane Doe 2 exhibited signs of having been struck by a vehicle, with injuries to her lower legs and abrasions on her back suggesting she had been hit or dragged by a vehicle. Additionally, Jane Doe 2’s 5-year-old daughter, referred to as Minor 1, was found wounded at the scene and taken to the hospital for treatment. It was later learned that the 5-year-old was reportedly shot in the head and taken to a Lubbock hospital.
However, Jane Doe 2’s 10-month-old daughter, known in the complaint as Minor 2, was missing. Surveillance footage captured Minor 2, later identified as Eleia, with her mother at a nearby Dollar General store just before the incident, prompting the New Mexico State Police to issue an AMBER Alert for Eleia Maria Torres.
Evidence collected at the scene, including 9mm handgun casings and a vehicle sideview mirror cover, pointed to potential involvement of a maroon Honda. In connection to this event, three witnesses reported passing by Ned Houk Memorial Park sometime between 3:00 and 4:00 pm on May 3, 2024. They observed a maroon/red colored vehicle present at the park, believed to be before the shooting occurred. One witness specifically noted seeing the maroon/red car parked across from an older model van. The murder victims used a minivan, which authorities found at the crime scene, matching the description provided by the witnesses.
Law enforcement obtained video surveillance footage from the McDonald’s located at 3801 North Prince St. in Clovis, New Mexico, just a short distance from the park. The footage revealed that on May 3, 2024, at 2:42 pm, a maroon Honda bearing Texas license plate TTK3358 passed through the McDonald’s drive-through lane.
Further investigation revealed that the maroon Honda with Texas license plate TTK3358 had been rented by Collins through HyreCar, a peer-to-peer carsharing marketplace. GPS data from the vehicle placed it near the park around the estimated time of the double homicide.
Cell phone records and law enforcement searches tied Collins to a phone in the vicinity of the park during the incident.
Subsequently, authorities discovered that on May 3, 2024, at 10:52 pm, based on GPS data, the vehicle had reached the residence situated at the 800 block of Harwell St., which is in Abilene, Texas. The owner remotely disabled the vehicle after Collins failed to return the rental on time.
During preparations to execute a search warrant at a residence, officers witnessed an Uber driver operating a Cadillac SUV arrive on the street. Collins exited the residence with Eleia and placed the child in the rear passenger seat of the SUV. Collins then proceeded to carjack the Uber driver at gunpoint, forcing the driver to exit the vehicle before driving away with Eleia.
During the early morning hours of May 6, 2024, the Abilene Police Department’s Narcotics Unit promptly pursued the Cadillac and successfully immobilized the vehicle, leading to Collins’s swift arrest and the safe recovery of Eleia.
It’s important to clarify that Collins has no familial relation to Eleia and lacks legal custody of the child.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office.
The investigation involved collaboration among various law enforcement agencies, including the New Mexico State Police, Clovis Police Department, Abilene Texas Police Department Narcotics Unit, Curry County Sheriff’s Office, Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office, Roswell Police Department, Portales Police Department, the Ninth Judicial District Attorney’s Office, FBI Dallas Field Office, FBI Amarillo Resident Agency, and FBI Abilene Resident Agency. Assistant United States Attorneys Jaymie L. Roybal and Joseph Spindle are leading the prosecution of the case.
It’s important to remember that a criminal complaint alleges wrongdoing, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Historical Reporting by Collins
In September 2023, Collins reached out to the FBI via phone, expressing a desire for law enforcement assistance in locating his daughter and making threatening remarks. The FBI promptly contacted local authorities and stayed in communication with Collins until they handed him over to the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office, which arranged for Collins to undergo a mental health evaluation.
On October 10, 2023, Collins contacted the FBI again, this time from phone number 346-265-1271, and issued a threat, stating that if law enforcement did not aid him in finding his missing five-year-old daughter, he would resort to violence against both adults and children. Collins admitted to previously kidnapping a woman and her son and even sent a photo of the abducted individuals to the FBI to pressure law enforcement into helping him locate his daughter. Despite attempts by local law enforcement to contact Collins following the second call, they were unsuccessful.
In response to these concerning behaviors, law enforcement activated an NICS alert to notify if Collins attempted to purchase a firearm. Furthermore, due to his mental health evaluation, Collins was legally prohibited from purchasing firearms in Texas. At the time of the October call, Collins was intoxicated and could only refer to his child as “Rebecca,” unable to provide her true name. He was also unable to provide the name of the child’s mother. In subsequent interviews conducted by law enforcement in 2023, Collins maintained that he did not possess any weapons and claimed that his threats were merely a means to attract attention in order to secure assistance in locating his daughter.
You can read the criminal complaint here.
*The Federal indictment spells Collins’ name Alik, but Abilene PD and the Taylor County Jail has his name spelled Alek. In addition, the DOJ email that we received and DOJ website spell his name Alek.