A New Mexico woman was spending the evening with her four-year-old granddaughter when a stranger broke into her home and demanded her keys, leading to a heated confrontation that ended when she shot at the man.
Anissa Tinnin, 45, was thrilled to have her granddaughter spend the night at her home in Albuquerque. She planned to take the little girl to school the next morning.
The duo dined, swam and cuddled on the couch while they watched Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour.
“We ate our popcorn and M&Ms, danced and sang, as our lives were about to suddenly change,” Tinnin wrote on Facebook of the evening of March 21.
Suddenly, a man she had never seen before came rushing through the front door. The grandmother would later learn that he had jumped a fence on the property, his every move captured by a Ring camera.
Anissa Tinnin, 45, was spending the night with her four-year-old granddaughter when a stranger suddenly burst into her home in Albuquerque.
The man, Joseph Rivera, 32, was fleeing police when he jumped the fence on Tinnin’s property and broke into her home.
Rivera demanded the woman give him the keys to her expensive Range Rover Sport and threatened to harm his granddaughter if she didn’t obey.
“I jumped over that couch and we met by the front door,” Tinnin told KRQE.
“That’s when he grabbed me, got angry and told me to give him my keys. He said he didn’t want to go to jail. He threatened to hurt my granddaughter and me.
Unbeknownst to her, the man, Joseph Rivera, 32, was a convicted felon with a lengthy criminal record.
Once inside Tinnin’s house, he asked her to give him the keys to his Range Rover Sport. The luxury car is increasingly targeted by thieves, who can easily intercept the signal between the vehicle and its key, unlock the doors and drive away.
As Tinnin frantically searched for her keys, she called 911. “I told him not to hurt us, that I would do whatever he wanted.” I would give him the keys, the money, whatever he needed,” she explained.
Rivera eventually grabbed a key fob and walked toward the car, and Tinnin began pleading with the 911 operator.
“This guy came into my house and tried to take my car. Please help me,” she begged in a broadcast recording of the call.
Rivera was charged with burglary, attempted felony and auto theft, and was ordered to remain behind bars Thursday.
Tinnin opened fire when the man returned home. She gave him first aid and stayed with him until the police arrived.
“I’ll give you some water, but if you hurt me, I’ll shoot you again,” Tinnin can be heard saying in a 911 call.
The 32-year-old has a lengthy criminal record, including five prior felony convictions.
She asked her granddaughter to stay in a room while the little girl cried, repeatedly assuring her, “It’s okay, baby.” It’s good.’
Tinnin then grabbed his gun. As sirens sounded in the distance, Rivera returned, this time breaking down the door.
‘Come back, come back. I have a gun. To come back. To come back. I’ll fucking shoot you, Tinnin shouted before opening fire.
“Why did you shoot me?” » asked Rivera.
“Because you’re in my fucking house!” said the grandmother.
She then came to the man’s aid, applying pressure to the wound and telling him that she would help him on one condition: “I will give you water, but if you hurt me, I I’m going to shoot you.” Again.’
Police say Rivera was spotted in a stolen car around 9:30 p.m. After hitting spike strips, he continued driving before crashing into the vehicle and fleeing the scene.
Rivera was dragged away in handcuffs by police and taken to a local hospital. At the time, he was on bail for a July 2023 case in which he was found in a stolen car with fentanyl, cocaine and heroin, according to court records.
A judge ordered Rivera to remain behind bars during his court appearance Thursday.
“I would like him to be detained to the fullest extent possible. I definitely don’t want the DA’s office to give him a plea deal. He belongs in prison,” Tinnin said.
More than a month later, her granddaughter continues to struggle with the memories of that night. She has developed a fear of the dark and constantly asks her mother if the doors are locked and if the alarm is activated.
On Facebook, Tinnin blasted the city of Alburquerque for allowing offenders to run rampant.
“This city is a mess,” she wrote. “Criminals ruin the lives of innocent people every day. I’m tired of remaining silent about the disaster caused by the leaders of this city.
Rivera faces charges of burglary, attempting to commit a felony and auto theft. These are in addition to five prior felony convictions.
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