Taos Man Sentenced to Life in Prison Plus 120 Months for Brutal 2023 Taos Slaying and Coverup
ALBUQUERQUE / Thursday, August 6, 2026 – A federal judge sentenced Zebadiah Romero, 38, a non-Indian, to life in prison plus 120 months following his convictions for multiple felonies in relation to the cold-blooded murder of a Taos Pueblo man in 2023.
Because there is no parole in the federal system, Romero will spend the rest of his life in prison.
According to evidence presented at trial, on October 30, 2023, Romero, who had been previously evicted and banned from the Taos Pueblo, shot and killed John Doe inside John Doe’s residence on the Taos Pueblo before stealing Doe’s property and concealing evidence. Doe was an enrolled member of the Taos Pueblo. After the killing, Romero removed Doe’s body from the residence and barricaded it within a separate structure on Doe’s property. Romero then stole Doe’s pickup truck and dog before disposing of evidence related to the offense. On November 4, 2023, Taos Pueblo Department of Public Safety officers discovered a blood trail leading from the victim’s bedroom, which ultimately led investigators to Doe’s body inside an adjacent abandoned structure. The victim had been wrapped in bedding material, covered with a tarp, and hidden beneath other miscellaneous items.
The Office of the Medical Investigator determined that Doe died from a single gunshot wound to the back of the head.
At trial, the United States presented extensive evidence placing Romero with Doe on the morning of the murder and eyewitness testimony identifying Romero driving Doe’s truck with Doe’s dog shortly after Doe had been slain. Witnesses recounted Romero’s motive prior to the killing as revenge for his belief that Doe had reported Romero’s criminal activities to law enforcement. Prior to the murder, Romero stated his intent to kill Doe and steal his truck, adding that he would “sleep like a baby and get away with it.”
Among other pieces of evidence, jurors heard Romero’s recorded interviews with the FBI following his arrest. In those interviews, Romero gave shifting accounts of the events inside the home before ultimately acknowledging that he shot Doe and removed evidence, including the spent casing and the murder weapon. Trial evidence also showed that Romero, a previously convicted felon, unlawfully possessed the firearm used in the killing and later disposed of it.
The jury found Romero guilty of first-degree murder, using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and larceny of the victim’s truck.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Special Agent in Charge Justin A. Garris of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office made the announcement today.
The Santa Fe Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Taos Pueblo Department of Public Safety and the Albuquerque Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jesse E. Pecoraro and Mark A. Probasco are prosecuting the case.
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico
