Gordon Wilson, 83, was shot during a Santa Fe carjacking after decades of finance, archaeology and nonprofit work.
SANTA FE, N.M. — Gordon Wilson had spent years helping preserve archaeological sites before authorities say he was shot and killed in a Best Buy parking lot by a man who has now pleaded guilty to a federal crime spree.
The guilty plea by Zachary Ryan Babitz, 40, placed a federal life sentence at the center of a case that began for many people with the death of Wilson, an 83-year-old retired finance executive and archaeology advocate. Prosecutors said Babitz admitted to robberies, carjackings and firearms counts tied to events in Bernalillo, Santa Fe and Doña Ana counties. For Wilson’s colleagues, the case was not only about the list of crimes. It was also about the sudden loss of a board chair, mentor and longtime supporter of cultural preservation.
Wilson was killed Aug. 6, 2024, outside the Best Buy store at 3533 Zafarano Drive in Santa Fe. Authorities said Babitz confronted him with a gun, shot him and took his vehicle. The shooting happened in a commercial area where shoppers, workers and drivers were moving through a normal weekday. Santa Fe police later identified Babitz as the suspect and issued an arrest warrant on state charges that included murder, robbery, unlawful taking of a vehicle and felon in possession of a firearm. Police officials said at the time that they did not know why Wilson was targeted.
Before the killing became part of a federal prosecution, Wilson was known through a different kind of record. The Archaeological Conservancy said he served on its board for two decades and had been chairman since 2007. The group said he helped create plans to preserve 25 to 30 archaeological sites and brought a strong mix of financial skill and field interest to the organization. Wilson had retired from a 29-year finance career that included roles as chief investment officer and president of Kemper-Murray Johnstone International in Chicago. He also served for 14 years on the board of Crow Canyon Archaeological Center after spending three years excavating Ancestral Puebloan sites near Cortez, Colorado.
Those who worked with Wilson described him in personal terms, not only by his titles. Mark Michel, president emeritus of The Archaeological Conservancy, said Wilson was “a gentle man, in the old sense of the word.” Cory Wilkins, the group’s western regional director, said Wilson was a mentor and friend who brought judgment and humor to site work. Tamara Jager Stewart, a Southwest regional projects director, remembered him as smart, generous and sweet, and noted that he volunteered each spring at Santa Fe Community College to help people file taxes. The organization said Wilson was survived by his wife, Judy, his brother and sister-in-law, nieces, nephews and great-nephews.
Federal prosecutors said Wilson’s killing came in the middle of a wider sequence that started days earlier in Albuquerque. On July 30, 2024, Babitz entered an AutoZone with a 9mm handgun, demanded money and stole about $345, according to court documents. On July 31, prosecutors said, he robbed a Wells Fargo bank in Albuquerque by presenting a demand note and indicating he was armed, taking about $3,300. On Aug. 3, he robbed a Jersey Mike’s restaurant at gunpoint, took money from the register and forced an employee to open a safe. Three days later, Wilson was killed in Santa Fe County.
The days after Wilson’s death widened the case even more. Albuquerque police said robbery detectives were still trying to identify the Wells Fargo suspect when they learned of the Santa Fe homicide. Santa Fe police shared a tentative identification, the location of the stolen Jeep and information that the suspect might be headed toward Albuquerque. Detectives said they watched the vehicle, checked Babitz’s background and compared witness descriptions from the bank robbery with information about a gold Chevrolet Tahoe registered to him. Albuquerque police said license plate reader information put the Tahoe near the bank and that GPS data from an ankle monitor placed Babitz at the bank at 1:55 p.m. on July 31.
Authorities said Babitz had been released from New Mexico prison on March 12, 2024, only months before the attacks. State corrections officials said he had been sentenced in 2019 to 23 years for robbery and receiving or transferring stolen motor vehicles, but a judge suspended all but 10 years. Officials said he also received credit for time already served and earned good-time credit before release to two years of parole followed by five years of probation. Albuquerque police said he was required to wear a GPS ankle monitor, wore it during the bank robbery and cut it off before Wilson was killed.
The final public stage of the crime spree unfolded in southern New Mexico. Federal prosecutors said Babitz carried out another carjacking in Bernalillo County on Aug. 9. On Aug. 10, they said, he and an accomplice robbed an Arby’s restaurant in Las Cruces at gunpoint, stole cash and later forced a victim from a vehicle with firearms. Police said Babitz was arrested after the Las Cruces robbery and a crash. The woman described as an accomplice fled, and public accounts have not resolved her status. The chain of events placed local police agencies, federal firearms investigators and the FBI into the same case file.
Babitz’s plea covered two counts of interference with commerce by robbery, bank robbery, carjacking resulting in death, firearm use during a violent crime causing death, additional carjacking and robbery counts, aiding and abetting counts and felon in possession of a firearm. Federal prosecutors had put the death penalty on the table before the plea agreement. Under the deal, prosecutors and defense lawyers agreed that life imprisonment was the proper result. A federal judge still must impose sentence, but the agreement marks the main turning point in the case.
For now, Wilson’s colleagues continue to preserve his memory through a memorial fund tied to archaeological preservation, while the federal court case moves toward sentencing. The next milestone is the formal imposition of the life sentence called for in the plea agreement.
Author note: Last updated May 10, 2026.