A man is arrested for fatally stabbing his friend atan apartment complex in Southeast Albuquerque.
Colin Bilagody, 23, is charged with an open count of murder and tampering with evidence in the death of 23-year-old Tyren Begay. The incident took place in the early hours of March 31, 2026 at an apartment complex located at 700 Eubank Blvd SE.
Officers with the Albuquerque Police Department were dispatched to the Manzano Mesa apartments near Southern and Eubank SE around 3 a.m. Wednesday after receiving a call that a man — later identified as Begay —had been stabbed after an argument, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found Begay deceased near the front door with a fatal wound to his chest. Police observed blood throughout the apartment's hallway and living room, and a bloody kitchen knife was recovered from the sidewalk outside the unit.
Court documents reveal that the victim's girlfriend had been drinking alcohol with Begay and Bilagody at another residence before the group returned to her apartment. Bilagody told police later he made a joke about Begay's shirt and about Begay having "titties," and that after he made this joke, Begay began hitting him.
Begay's girlfriend informed investigators that the two men started fighting upon their arrival, and despite her multiple attempts to intervene, she was unsuccessful. The girlfriend said she witnessed Bilagody stab the victim in the chest while inside her living room. Following the altercation, she sought help from neighbors who called 911.
Surveillance cameras located inside the apartment captured portions of the physical struggle. The complaint notes that the footage reportedly showed the victim pushing Bilagody to the ground and kicking him earlier that morning. Later in the recording, Bilagody is seen exiting the apartment holding a knife with a blood-covered hand.
Detectives executed a search warrant at Bilagody's residence and found a pair of blood-stained brown shorts that Bilagody had allegedly changed out of after fleeing the scene on foot.
Bilagody turned himself in at a Northeast substation on Tuesday afternoon. During an interview with detectives, he alleged the victim was the primary aggressor and had hit and kicked him multiple times in the head and ribs.
Bilagody stated he grabbed a kitchen knife to scare the victim in self-defense but claimed he "blacked out" and accidentally stabbed him after being pushed down again. He expressed to investigators that he should have walked away from the fight.
"Stabbing your friend during a fight is extremely violent and dangerous behavior that shows no concern for the health and safety of the victim," states a pretrial detention motion filed by prosecutors. Bilagody was booked into the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center on April 1 at 12:10 AM.
