ALBUQUERQUE, NM — Albuquerque police have charged a 33-year-old landlord with murder after detectives say he shot a tenant and buried the body about two feet underground in a yard.
Homicide detectives identified the suspect as Jonah Jeter and said the victim was Robert Debeary, 52. Police announced the charges Wednesday after what they described as a months-long investigation that began when Debeary was reported missing in August.
According to investigators, Debeary was last heard from on Aug. 11. Police say the next day, Aug. 12, Jeter fatally shot him and buried him at a residence near Alcazar Street in Northeast Albuquerque.
Missing-person report led detectives to an anonymous tip
Debeary’s family reported him missing after they could not reach him in August, and the case eventually drew in homicide detectives. Police said an anonymous tip later connected Jeter to Debeary’s disappearance, giving investigators a new lead.
That tip became a turning point in the case. Detectives say they began focusing on Jeter as they tried to figure out what happened to Debeary after he stopped making contact with relatives.
Authorities have not publicly described the relationship between the two beyond saying Jeter rented the property to tenants, including Debeary. The case moved forward as detectives worked to connect the missing-person investigation to the alleged killing and burial.
Search warrants at Jeter’s home and car turned up stolen firearms
In October, Albuquerque police served search warrants at Jeter’s Northeast Albuquerque home and on his vehicle. Detectives say those searches uncovered stolen firearms in his car, which led to Jeter’s arrest.
Police have not said in detail how the firearms fit into the homicide investigation, but they say the evidence helped move the case forward. The arrest came before investigators later returned to the rental property near Alcazar Street.
The use of search warrants suggests detectives were still building the case while trying to confirm where Debeary had gone and what had happened after he vanished. The investigation continued through the fall as police followed up on the earlier tip.
Human remains found in a small yard space near Alcazar Street
Detectives later searched the Alcazar Street property that Jeter rented to tenants. On Oct. 27, police say they found human remains buried in a small yard area about two feet below the surface.
An autopsy later identified the body as Debeary. Medical examiners also found a gunshot wound to the head, according to police.
That discovery appears to have confirmed the central allegation in the case: that Debeary was not merely missing, but had been killed and secretly buried at the property. Investigators have not said what led them to that exact spot, only that the search uncovered the remains.
Murder, tampering and burglary charges followed the discovery
After the remains were identified, detectives charged Jeter with an open count of murder, three counts of tampering with evidence and aggravated burglary. Police said the charges reflect the wider scope of the alleged conduct, not only the killing itself but also the effort to conceal what happened.
An open count of murder allows prosecutors to pursue a homicide charge without limiting the case to a specific degree at the charging stage. The evidence-tampering counts and burglary charge point to the investigation’s view that the crime involved both the death and the aftermath.
Police have not released additional details about motive or what happened immediately before the shooting. They say the investigation is still active.
Jeter remains in custody as investigators piece together the timeline
Jeter is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center, according to police. He remains in custody while the case moves through the legal system.
The investigation has now traced a timeline from Debeary’s disappearance in August to the discovery of his body in late October. Police say the case began with a missing-person report, then expanded after the anonymous tip, the warrant searches and the discovery of human remains.
For Debeary’s family, the case has shifted from uncertainty to a homicide investigation with a charged suspect. For detectives, the work now centers on assembling the sequence of events and presenting evidence tied to the alleged shooting, burial and concealment of the body.
