ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – She was the subject of a Larry Barker investigation. A woman accused of murder in 2023 got her case dropped after a judge found her incompetent to stand trial. Now that woman is behind bars again for a completely different murder, and the victim’s family is outraged that she was still on the streets.
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Geraldine Begay, 52, appeared before a judge on Tuesday, accused of stabbing 59-year-old Crystal Markum to death last month at the French Quarter Apartments on Palomas Dr. Her family described Markum as a loving person. “She was very outgoing, everybody knew Crystal. If you didn’t know Crystal, she made sure you knew her. Everybody loved her, though,” said Shane Brummett, Markum’s cousin.
This isn’t the first time Begay has been in court on a murder charge. In 2023, Begay was accused of hitting a man in the head with an object, leaving him dead. A Larry Barker investigation last year revealed Begay was found incompetent to stand trial. But Judge Lucy Solimon also ruled Begay “was not dangerous.” That led to her murder charge getting dismissed and her release from custody…