Ralph Montoya pled guilty to two counts of second-degree murder, and one count of second-degree kidnapping Tuesday in court in relation to the murders of UNM professor Hector Torres and graduate student Stefania Gray in March 2010.
Torres, 54, and his girlfriend Gray, 43, were found shot to death in Torres’ home on March 8, 2010. Montoya, Gray’s ex-boyfriend, confessed to murdering the couple the next day, according to reports. The kidnapping charge stems from a January 2010 incident when Montoya reportedly entered Torres’ home and held him at knifepoint.
“It is a sad day, because there really can be no closure to this horrific event in our lives,” Dee Iannone, Torres’ sister, told the court. “I came to face this larger-than-life entity who murdered my brother. Instead, there sits nothing but a man who committed a monstrous and cold-blooded act.”
Iannone said she hates what Montoya did to her brother, but that she is satisfied with his sentence.
“I will not carry the poison of hatred in my heart,” she said. “Hatred is what has this man here.”
Iannone and other family members brought photographs of Torres for the judge’s consideration.
Montoya’s sentence comes as part of a sentencing agreement under which all counts will be served consecutively for a total of 41 years. The state agreed to suspend 16 years of his sentence on the condition that Montoya complete five years of supervised probation.
Montoya also agreed that the kidnapping charge would be designated a serious violent offense. Neither Montoya nor his attorney had any comments before sentencing.
Gray’s mother, Teresa Pittman, was less forgiving of Montoya.
“Ralph, you deserve death,” she said. “When the lord calls, you will be judged.”
Pittman said her daughter, who had previously filed a restraining order against Montoya, feared for her life.
“She knew he would murder her,” she said.
District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Kayla Anderson said that though a measure of closure was given to the families, vigilance is still important.
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“Vigilance is important among every single individual in their community,” she said. “Whether in your home or walking to your car, you always need to protect yourself and be on the lookout for any sort of danger that could be lurking around the corner because you really never know.”
Torres had been with UNM since 1986 in the UNM Department of English Language and Literature and taught contemporary postmodern Chicana and Chicano studies. Gray was a graduate student in comparative literature in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures. Gray also taught ninth-grade English in Bernalillo.
English Department Chairwoman Dr. Gail Houston said that after the murders last year, a memorial fund was established, and resulted in the creation of the Gray-Torres Conference on Stalking and Domestic Violence.
