February 10, 1990. It was a Saturday morning that should’ve been loud with the sound of falling pins and kids laughing. Instead, Las Cruces woke up to a massacre so brutal it fundamentally changed how people in the Southwest viewed their own safety. If you mention the nightmare in Las Cruces to anyone who lived there at the time, you’ll see their expression shift instantly. It’s a scar. A deep, jagged one that refuses to fade because, even decades later, the killers haven’t been caught.
The Las Cruces Bowling Alley massacre wasn't just a robbery gone wrong. It was an execution. Two gunmen walked into Las Cruces Bowl on East Amador Avenue before the doors even officially opened for the day. They didn't just want the money from the safe. They wanted silence. They lined up seven people—including four children—and shot them in the back of the head.
What Really Happened Inside the Las Cruces Bowl?
Most people think of mass shootings as modern phenomena, but the nightmare in Las Cruces proved that targeted, cold-blooded violence has always been a lurking shadow. The victims were just going about their Saturday. Stephanie Senac, the manager, was there with her daughter, Sarita. They were joined by Amy Houser, an 13-year-old who was just there to help out. Then there was Ida Holguin, the cook, and Steve Teran, a mechanic who had unfortunately brought his two young daughters, Valerie and Paula, along because he couldn’t find a babysitter.
It was roughly 8:30 AM.
The gunmen made off with about $4,000. That’s it. For four thousand dollars, they took four lives on the spot and left three others clinging to survival. The youngest victim was only two years old. It’s sickening. Honestly, it’s the kind of detail that makes you lose sleep.
The Escape and the Fire
The killers weren't done after the shooting. To cover their tracks, they set fire to the office. They probably thought the flames would consume the evidence and the witnesses. They were wrong. Melissa Repass, who was only 12 at the time and had just been shot, found the strength to call 911.
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If you listen to the 911 tapes—and I don't recommend it unless you have a stomach of steel—you hear a child’s voice through the chaos. She’s terrified. She’s bleeding. But she’s the reason the police arrived while the building was still standing. Because of her, we have descriptions. Because of her, we know there were two of them.
Why the Nightmare in Las Cruces Remains Unsolved
You’d think with survivors and a crime scene that wasn't totally destroyed, the police would have made an arrest within weeks. But the investigation hit wall after wall. This is where the frustration sets in for the families. Over 1,500 leads. Decades of DNA testing. Tips from all over the country. And yet, the sketch of the two suspects—one older, one younger—remains the only face of the crime.
There’s been plenty of speculation. Was it an inside job? Was it a cartel hit? Was it just two random drifters passing through New Mexico?
The lead investigators, including people like Mark Myers and many who have since retired, have looked into every possible angle. They’ve gone to prisons to interview inmates who claimed to have info. They’ve re-tested the bullet casings. But the nightmare in Las Cruces is a "cold case" in the truest, most agonizing sense of the word. The killers likely knew the layout. They knew when the safe would be accessible. That suggests some level of local knowledge, which only makes the lack of an arrest more haunting for the community.
The Survivors' Burden
Living through something like this isn't "moving on." It's surviving every single day.
Stephanie Senac survived the initial shooting but passed away years later; many believe the physical and emotional toll of the shooting shortened her life. Melissa Repass and Jimmie Teran have had to carry the weight of that morning for over thirty years.
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Imagine being in a town where the killers might still be walking the streets. Or maybe they're long gone, living lives in another state, thinking they got away with it. That’s the psychological reality for Las Cruces. Every time a new "true crime" documentary comes out or a podcast mentions the case, the wound gets ripped open again.
Debunking the Myths Around the Case
Whenever a case goes cold for this long, the internet starts spinning yarns. You'll see theories on Reddit claiming the money was never recovered or that the police lost the evidence in the fire.
- The Evidence: The police actually have a significant amount of evidence. The fire didn't destroy everything. They have fingerprints that don't match anyone in the system—yet.
- The Motive: While $4,000 seems small for such a high-risk crime, in 1990, that was a more substantial "haul" for a quick robbery. It doesn't mean there was a deeper conspiracy. Sometimes, people are just evil for very little gain.
- The "Drug Link": There has never been any concrete evidence linking the victims or the bowling alley to the drug trade, despite what some "armchair detectives" suggest online.
The reality is likely much more mundane and much more terrifying: two men committed a horrific act and managed to disappear into the vastness of the American West before modern digital surveillance could catch them.
The Impact on Las Cruces and Beyond
The bowling alley itself eventually reopened, but it never felt the same. It was later demolished, and now a different building stands there. But the GPS coordinates don't matter as much as the cultural memory. This event ended an era of innocence for southern New Mexico. People started locking their doors. Businesses changed how they handled morning shifts.
The nightmare in Las Cruces also served as a catalyst for how the state handles cold cases. It’s one of the reasons the New Mexico Department of Public Safety pushes so hard for advanced forensic funding. They know that somewhere, in some lab, there might be a microscopic speck of skin or a hair follicle that finally links a name to the sketches.
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The Power of Cold Case Units
Today, the Dona Ana County Sheriff's Office and the Las Cruces Police Department still have this case on their "active" list. They haven't given up. With the rise of genetic genealogy—the same tech that caught the Golden State Killer—there is a glimmer of hope. If the killers left DNA and they have relatives who’ve taken a commercial DNA test, the net might finally close.
But time is the enemy.
Witnesses die.
Memories fade.
Evidence degrades.
Actionable Steps for Those Following the Case
If you’re someone who follows true crime or if you’re just a concerned citizen, there are ways to actually help rather than just speculating on forums.
- Review the Sketches: Take a look at the age-progressed sketches released by the FBI and local authorities. They show what the suspects might look like today, likely in their 60s or 70s.
- Support Cold Case Legislation: Push for funding that allows small-town police departments to access expensive "Y-STR" or "SNP" DNA sequencing.
- Report, Don't Speculate: If you have actual information—maybe a relative who lived in Las Cruces in 1990 and matches the description—contact the Las Cruces Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477. There is still a significant reward for information leading to an arrest.
- Stay Informed via Official Channels: Avoid the sensationalized "creepypasta" versions of this story. Stick to reporting from the Las Cruces Sun-News or official police briefings to get the facts.
The nightmare in Las Cruces won't truly end until there is a resolution. For the families of Steve, Valerie, Paula, and Amy, justice isn't a vague concept—it's a necessity. Until then, the story remains a grim reminder that even in a quiet desert town, the unthinkable can happen in the blink of an eye. We owe it to the victims to keep the facts straight and keep the pressure on for answers.