Man sentenced for 2020 I-25 shootings between Bernalillo and Kewa Pueblo

During a January to April I-25 shooting spree in 2020, a 38-year-old Albuquerque man caused injury to several people between Bernalillo and Kewa Pueblo.

Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, special agent in charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced March 16 that Byron Rosetta, an enrolled member of the Kewa Pueblo, was responsible for the shootings and was sentenced to 10 years and one day in prison.

Between Jan. 3, 2020, and April 4, 2020, law enforcement determined that Rosetta shot at several drivers from his vehicle and from the roadside near I-25. Rosetta used various firearms, including a .38 caliber pistol.  Several victims suffered injuries and damage to their windshields and other parts of their vehicles.

Here is the reported timeline of reported events:

According to the plea agreement and other court records, on Jan. 3, 2020, law enforcement began receiving reports of seemingly indiscriminate shooting incidents along Interstate 25 between Bernalillo and the Kewa Pueblo. 

On April 4, 2020, Rosetta fired a shotgun at a vehicle traveling south on I-25 through the Kewa Pueblo, and the driver of the vehicle was struck in the face by birdshot. Rosetta then shot an ambulance from Santo Domingo Pueblo that responded to a 911 call for the incident. Despite damage to the ambulance windshield, paramedics continued their service and transported the occupants of the first vehicle to the University of New Mexico Hospital.

On April 5, 2020, Rosetta was driving on State Road 22 on the Kewa Pueblo in Sandoval County when he shot a passing vehicle, narrowly missing the unsuspecting driver. The driver reported the incident to law enforcement, and agents were able to identify Rosetta’s vehicle in surveillance footage.

On April 9, New Mexico State Police officers executed a search warrant on Rosetta’s residence. During the search, officers located a handgun, a shotgun and ammunition.

On June 22, 2022, Rosetta pleaded guilty to two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon in Indian Country and one count of using a firearm during a crime of violence.