2 Violent Las Vegas Murders May Have Been Sparked By Under $100 In Debt

Two murders that took place in May in Las Vegas may have been sparked over an unpaid debt as low as $100, according to court paperwork filed in Nevada.

Eric Mosley, 31, was shot to death in a trailer in the middle of the night on Mother’s Day; just 30 minutes later, police were notified of a dead body inside a burned-out pickup truck east of Las Vegas. The victim in that incident has been identified as 39-year-old Sandra Marie Cruz-Lopez, a mother of seven who lived with Mosley.

Antonio Barry-Edwards, 24, and Jordan Monahan, 30, now both face kidnapping, murder, and arson charges in Cruz-Lopez’s death. Barry-Edwards has also been charged with murder for Mosley’s death. Witnesses claimed to have seen Barry-Edwards and the victim arguing before several gunshots rang out, according to court filings.

Barry-Edwards and Monahan were reportedly in a relationship. 

Monahan’s arrest report, obtained by local outlet KLAS, alleges that the couple took Cruz-Lopez from the trailer she shared with Mosley to a valley, where they shot her about seven times. 

Two different individuals allegedly told police that both killings were over money that Mosley owed Barry-Edwards for a stolen truck, KLAS reported. The sum of that alleged debt could be as low as $100 or as high as $800, according to the local station's report.

One witness claimed that Barry-Edwards later told him that he'd become angry with Cruz-Lopez as they were driving to the valley after she brought up the fact that it was Mother’s Day. This apparently upset Barry-Edwards, as his mother is dead.

Cruz-Lopez’s slaying has left her seven kids without a mother.

According to the arrest report, Barry-Edwards had allegedly asked Monahan to shoot Cruz-Lopez, but he ultimately pulled the trigger after she expressed hesitation. The report alleges that it was Monahan’s idea to use WD-40 to light the truck on fire.

Both Barry-Edwards and Monahan were slapped with charges last week. Monahan was arrested on Tuesday on an open murder charge and related charges, according to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police. Barry-Edwards, who was also charged with open murder, was already behind bars. 

Weeks after the May murders, Barry-Edwards had been arrested on unrelated charges following what police said was a day-long standoff at a Las Vegas motel. He had allegedly drilled a hole between two motel units then held a 4-year-old and the child's babysitter hostage. He was sporting a bulletproof vest at the time of the incident, according to a report from KTNV.

Both Barry-Edwards and Monahan are due in court this week. It’s not clear if they have lawyers who can speak on their behalf.