Silver City Police Department reports homicide, SWAT teams still on scene

Category: Front Page News Front Page News
Published: 30 August 2013 30 August 2013

On August 30, 2013 at about 11:10 am, officers from the Silver City Police Department responded to a report of a shooting at a residence at 1620 N. Swan Street in Silver City. Shortly after that call, at about 11:16am, the Dispatch Center received a call from the emergency room at Gila Regional Medical Center reporting two male subjects had arrived with gunshot wounds.

Upon the officers’ arrival at the emergency room, they were informed one of the victims was pronounce dead with a gunshot wound to the chest. The second victim was being treated for a gunshot wound to the abdomen area and is listed in serious condition at the time of this release.

The deceased is Eric Vega Jr, 19 years of age and the other victim is a José Varela, 17 years of age.



Through witnesses’ statements, a possible suspect was developed. At about 2:16pm, information was received by a New Mexico State Police Officer that the possible suspect was at the NM Children’s Youth and Families office, which is located at 3082 32nd Street By-Pass. The suspect, Filemon Varela Jr, 16 years of age, was taken into the custody without incident. Varela confessed to the shooting.

Filemon Varela is being charged with an open count of Murder, Aggravated Battery, Tampering with evidence, and Unlawful Possession of a Handgun by a Person Under the Age of 19. The weapon used in the shooting was a 9mm handgun.

The shooting apparently happened as a result of an argument between the subjects who are all family related. All involved reside in Silver City.


Assisting agencies were the Grant County Sheriff’s Office and their Special Response Team, New Mexico State Police, U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement, Deming/Luna County SWAT, Santa Clara Police Department and the U.S. Marshalls Service.

The Silver City Police Department, Grant County and Deming/Luna County’s SWAT teams are being used to gain entry into the residence at the location of the shooting because a witness indicated he saw a person run into the residence but had not come out. No one would come to the door.   The SWAT teams are still on scene at the time of this release.

Content on the Beat

WARNING: All articles and photos with a byline or photo credit are copyrighted to the author or photographer. You may not use any information found within the articles without asking permission AND giving attribution to the source. Photos can be requested and may incur a nominal fee for use personally or commercially.

Disclaimer: If you find errors in articles not written by the Beat team but sent to us from other content providers, please contact the writer, not the Beat. For example, obituaries are always provided by the funeral home or a family member. We can fix errors, but please give details on where the error is so we can find it. News releases from government and non-profit entities are posted generally without change, except for legal notices, which incur a small charge.

NOTE: If an article does not have a byline, it was written by someone not affiliated with the Beat and then sent to the Beat for posting.

Images: We have received complaints about large images blocking parts of other articles. If you encounter this problem, click on the title of the article you want to read and it will take you to that article's page, which shows only that article without any intruders. 

New Columnists: The Beat continues to bring you new columnists. And check out the old faithfuls who continue to provide content.

Newsletter: If you opt in to the Join GCB Three Times Weekly Updates option above this to the right, you will be subscribed to email notifications with links to recently posted articles.

Submitting to the Beat

Those new to providing news releases to the Beat are asked to please check out submission guidelines at https://www.grantcountybeat.com/about/submissions. They are for your information to make life easier on the readers, as well as for the editor.

Advertising: Don't forget to tell advertisers that you saw their ads on the Beat.

Classifieds: We have changed Classifieds to a simpler option. Check periodically to see if any new ones have popped up. Send your information to editor@grantcountybeat.com and we will post it as soon as we can. Instructions and prices are on the page.

Editor's Notes

It has come to this editor's attention that people are sending information to the Grant County Beat Facebook page. Please be aware that the editor does not regularly monitor the page. If you have items you want to send to the editor, please send them to editor@grantcountybeat.com. Thanks!

Here for YOU: Consider the Beat your DAILY newspaper for up-to-date information about Grant County. It's at your fingertips! One Click to Local News. Thanks for your support for and your readership of Grant County's online news source—www.grantcountybeat.com

Feel free to notify editor@grantcountybeat.com if you notice any technical problems on the site. Your convenience is my desire for the Beat.  The Beat totally appreciates its readers and subscribers!  

Compliance: Because you are an esteemed member of The Grant County Beat readership, be assured that we at the Beat continue to do everything we can to be in full compliance with GDPR and pertinent US law, so that the information you have chosen to give to us cannot be compromised.