Lights Out
290: Four Dead, Three Wounded, Zero Arrests | The Las Cruces Bowling Alley Massacre
30 Mar 2026
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Lights out, everybody.
What's up, everybody? Welcome back to another episode of Lights Out. I'm your host, Josh. And I'm the producer, Daniel. And if you're listening to this, I am home with my new baby boy, enjoying some much needed time off with my family. And so you're listening to a prerecord.
And nevertheless, same quality as you're used to, Danny and I are here to cover one of the most infamous unsolved mass shootings in US history, but definitely one of the most infamous cases in New Mexico history. The Las Cruces Bowling Alley Massacre. It's always insane to me when there's a mass casualty crime that remains unsolved after so many years.
I mean, it's just hard to wrap your head around. So today we're going to take a look at what happened. Four people were left dead at the end of it. Two shooters are still unknown, uncaught. try to figure out what happened here because this case really just throws me through a loop. I have no idea how they did not get this solved.
So let's go ahead and jump into it and take a look at what happened.
Hey guys, Producer Daniel here. Just letting you know the Lights Out Spring Merch Collection is officially live. You can head over to MileHigherMerch.com right now to check out all the new designs on some warm weather pieces, plus some of the classic favorites like the tarot card shirt.
Not only do we think you'll love the new collection, but you'll be able to give back too, since 100% of the merch proceeds are donated to the Higher Hope Foundation for grant funding victims of violent crime. Head over to MileHigherMerch.com now to shop those.
Let's begin by talking a little bit about Las Cruces, New Mexico. It was founded in 1849 despite multiple major booms in its economy, and the area always remained a major family town with the vast majority of houses being small, single-family homes. And along with this peaceful family atmosphere was an expected low crime rate.
In 1980, the population had reached just over 44,000, and the yearly number of murders and manslaughter was zero. So a relatively safe place to live. And the total number of violent crimes was around 200. There were a few murders by 1985, but the overall violent crime rate had only risen to 250, with the population just being over 49,000 people.
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Chapter 2: What happened during the Las Cruces Bowling Alley Massacre?
The two young girls are going to be in charge of the bowling alley's childcare room for that day. Another employee, the bowling alley's cook, Ida Holguin, was also starting her shift in the bowling alley's kitchen, where she was just cleaning and prepping food for the arrival of patrons when the bowling alley opened at 9 a.m.
As she began working, two strange men entered the building through an unlocked door around 8.20 a.m. At first, I'd assume they were part of a maid service that sometimes came to clean the building. The men separated upon entering the bowling alley, with one heading toward the front of the establishment and one lingering near Ida.
The man lingering in the kitchen suddenly pulled out a .22 caliber pistol and aimed it at her. The man told her to come with him and that this was a holdup. and then he hit her on the head several times with the gun before forcing Ida to walk to the front of the bowling alley and into Stephanie Sinek's office.
Upon entry, Ida quickly learned what the other mysterious man had been doing, intercepting Stephanie and the girls as they entered the building and forcing them into Stephanie's office where they were being held at gunpoint. The gunman ordered the women and children to lie on the floor face down while they ransacked the bowling alley's office and safe, clearly looking for something.
One of the gunmen ordered Stephanie to open the office's safe. And to this day, it's unclear exactly what they took from the office other than about $4,000 to $5,000 that the bowling alley's owner claimed was missing from the safe. What was odd is that they didn't take all the money that was inside of that safe.
The men also began frantically going through the desk drawers and other compartments seemingly looking for something besides just money. But we have no idea what it is that they were looking for. As the men were terrorizing the four victims in the office, the PIN mechanic, Steve Teran, arrived for a shift at the bowling alley.
Steve had recently put his two-week notice in at the bowling alley and he was expecting a third child with his wife who was due any day. And though the man was looking forward to spending time with his family and his newborn, he didn't want to leave his co-workers at the bowling alley without any help.
So even though he didn't have childcare for his two older children, Steve packed the girls up and headed into work. He expected to leave the two young girls, six-year-old Paula and two-year-old Valerie, in the childcare center with Melissa and her friend Amy. However, when he entered the bowling alley, he found it eerily silent and immediately knew that something was wrong.
Steve wandered around the building for a few minutes trying to find his coworkers. He checked the kitchen and the childcare center, but there was no one to be found. Finally, Steve and the girls went to Stephanie Sinek's office, where they walked into the most terrifying and violent scene of women and girls lying on the floor with guns pointed at their heads.
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Chapter 3: Who were the victims of the Las Cruces Bowling Alley shooting?
They were super black.
Two black men? Yeah. Okay. No, they've left. Two black male.
Please help me.
Okay, okay. It's okay, Melissa.
There's a fire, too. There's a fire? Right on the desk. They're going to burn us up. Are the men still there? I don't know.
You don't know?
I don't know. They put us in the office. They put you in the office? Yes, I need a fire engine, too.
Please help me. Okay, Melissa. She said they locked them in the office. She doesn't know if they're still there or not. The door is open. There's a fire. It's on Amador, yeah. Please help. Can you smell smoke, Melissa? Yes, I can see it. OK. Can I get the fire extinguisher? Fire department, too? Yes. She says she smells smoke. They may have lit the building on fire.
No, it is on fire.
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Chapter 4: What were the circumstances leading up to the shooting?
Though the families of the victims and the survivors are forced to deal with the memories of that day, it seems many in the community at large have forgotten the events or have tried to just straight up forget them. Ida Holguin is one of the lone survivors. She was 33 at the time of the shooting, and as you might expect, left her position as a cook immediately after this day.
She does not speak about the events from that day, repeatedly turning down offers to appear in memorial events as well as videos. The only thing we really know is that she has expressed that the pain of that day still haunts her and she suffers from severe anxiety and panic attacks even 30 years later. Ida's husband, Raymond, said it took six months for Ida to be released from the hospital.
Ida suffered from panic and anxiety attacks, headaches, and PTSD. Her brain injuries made it difficult for her to do everyday things, and she had to relearn everything. Each year, on the anniversary of the event, Ida travels to Albuquerque, which is three hours away from Las Cruces, to get distance between her and the place where her life was changed forever.
However, Ida's life has seen some positivity as she became a grandmother and told Raymond that her grandkids finally showed her why God allowed her to live. Steve Tehran, the mechanic who lost his life and both of his daughters during the massacre, was 36 years old and preparing to begin a new chapter in his life as a father to three children.
Steve's brother Anthony was fresh out of high school when his brother was killed, and he often looks back at photos of Steve in the military where he learned his mechanic skills and remembers what his brother always tried to teach him, to always do the right thing.
And that's part of the inspiration behind Anthony still showing up to speak about his brother and nieces every year on the anniversary of their murder, even 35 years later. Steve's widow, Audra, was also permanently scarred that day by the loss of the love of her life and her two beautiful children. Audra remembers him as a hardworking man who always put his family first.
Those who knew Steve said that he was loyal to a fault, which is why he even went to work on that February morning, despite not being able to find a babysitter for his daughters Paula and Valerie. Audra described Paula Holguin, the boisterous six-year-old, as a girly girl with a bubbly personality, whose favorite color was fuchsia.
Paula also was a wonderful big sister to two-year-old Valerie, the youngest victim. Valerie may have been small, but she was already coming into her personality. Audra described her as a total opposite of her doting big sister, and reserved like her father.
She loved to wear anything blue and preferred jeans and a t-shirt to dresses, and despite their differences, the girls had a beautiful bond and should have had the opportunity to grow up together. But as Audra put it, someone decided to play God and take their lives. Amy Hauser was Melissa's best friend, and she was a loving girl with a naturally nurturing personality.
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