Albany police announced Friday the arrest of Vance Mims Jr., 44, for the July 5 killing of 39-year-old Iris Vazquez.
Mims Jr. is the father of 17-year-old Vance Mims III, who died following a shooting during last year’s Independence Day celebrations.
The elder Mims faces charges of second-degree murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon.
Vazquez’s murder was the result of an “ongoing interpersonal feud” that stemmed from last year’s July 4 shooting, although Vazquez was not involved in that violence, Police Chief Brendan Cox said. He declined to comment on the elder Mims’ motive.
“As a society — especially our adults, need to find nonviolent solutions to end their disputes. Even when those disputes stem from cycles of violence, that’s something we see far too often in our city,” Cox said at a Friday press conference. “Those cycles need to be broken, and our adults need to start showing our teens and children the right pathway.”
Police also arrested Mims III’s mother, 43-year-old Glenda Barrett, and charged her with hindering prosecution.
Albany County District Attorney Lee Kindlon said he had gotten to know Mims Jr. “even better over the past year” while working on the prosecutions of the people charged in connection with Mims III’s death. The two had bonded over being fathers of teenage boys.
“In all my interactions with him, he has been nothing but a mournful father,” Kindlon said. “Up frankly until now, he had always been mournful and respective of the process.”
Multiple shootings occurred in Albany last year near Empire State Plaza after the city's annual Independence Day celebrations in the area. The chaotic evening also included a fire destroying a Madison Avenue residence after it was struck by a projectile from a flare gun.
Three people, including two teenagers, have been charged in connection with Mims III’s death. Those prosecutions are ongoing.
Police “very quickly” identified Mims Jr. as a suspect in Vazquez's murder, according to Kindlon. Mims Jr. was arrested in Voorheesville Thursday night, days after Vazquez was killed on Sunday.
Vazquez was shot on Washington Avenue near Sprague Place and was pronounced dead at the scene.
In a series of unrelated events in Albany over the July 4 weekend — two stabbing incidents and a shooting — four people were injured. Police are still investigating those incidents and had no updates on Friday morning.
“I have all the confidence in the world that if we can build probable cause, we will bring justice to those cases as well,” Cox said.
So far this year, homicides are down 67% compared to this point last year, according to Kindlon. Homicides are down 76% compared to the city’s five-year average, and violent crime is down 16% compared to the same five-year average metric.
