Feb. 16—In 2020, officers responding to a shooting found Carlos Morris dragging a body to a vehicle, according to police. The gun used to fatally shoot the man was in Morris’ pocket and bleach had been poured on the blood trail.

Morris’ story, that someone else shot Teryn Kurtz, didn’t add up, and a bullet was lodged in his wrist.

Morris was then let go after a hospital stay, and no initial investigative steps were detailed in court records.

On Thursday, almost four years later, Morris was charged with an open count of murder and tampering with evidence in the June 25, 2020, death of 48-year-old Kurtz.

Gilbert Gallegos, an Albuquerque police spokesman, said detectives arrested Morris, 54, in Northeast Albuquerque. He has been booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center.

It is unclear if Morris has an attorney.

In response to several questions, including why an arrest wasn’t made sooner, Gallegos said, “Upon review after the primary detective left the department, new digital evidence techniques from our Digital Intel Team and new witness interviews helped get this case to a chargeable point.”

Police were called to the shooting around 9:15 p.m. in the 1200 block of Ortiz SE, near San Mateo and Kathryn, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court. Officers found Morris covered in blood and dragging Kurtz’s body to a vehicle.

Police said they handcuffed Morris and found a gun on him that had been fired until it was empty. An officer followed the blood trail, parts of which were washed with bleach, to Morris’ apartment.

Morris was hospitalized and a bullet was found lodged in his wrist.

Inside the apartment, police found methamphetamine and more blood covered in bleach, according to the complaint. A neighbor told police they heard a man say, “So you’re going to point a gun at me?” followed by gunfire.

Police said, at the time, Morris told them he argued with Kurtz, “but without explanation,” another man shot him. Morris told police he dragged Kurtz to the vehicle and tried to do CPR.

Morris could not explain how the bleach was poured over everything, though the uncapped bottle was found near him and the cap was still in his apartment, according to the complaint.

No other initial investigative steps are detailed in court records.

Another detective, the initial responding officer, took the case sometime before December 2023. The autopsy found Kurtz was shot at close distance and there were no signs that CPR was performed.

Police said Kurtz’s girlfriend told the detective Morris and Kurtz had been friends for years and Kurtz had been concerned Morris was using hard drugs and carrying a gun.

The detective concluded that Morris, who had the murder weapon in his pocket and a bullet in his wrist, “shot himself (as Kurtz) fought for his life,” according to the complaint.