Texas charges tied to a police chase must proceed before Vincent Galvan is returned to New Mexico.
PORTALES, N.M. — A murder case in Roosevelt County is moving on a two-state track after the suspect was arrested in Texas following a chase unrelated at first to the woman’s death.
Vincent Galvan, 38, remains jailed in Farwell, Texas, where authorities are handling charges tied to a stolen vehicle, gunfire and a police pursuit. In New Mexico, he is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Ricki Lee White, 38, whose body was found May 12 inside an SUV on abandoned property near South Roosevelt Road 6. Roosevelt County Sheriff Javier Sanchez said Galvan will be returned to New Mexico after the Texas case is adjudicated. Until then, the homicide case rests largely on court filings, forensic claims and the record investigators say White left behind.
The New Mexico complaint charges Galvan with murder, tampering with evidence, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, unlawful taking of a motor vehicle and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The charges came after investigators reviewed the scene, witness statements, phone records and a recorded jail call. Authorities say White had been collecting evidence that could be used against Galvan and that he killed her after learning of it. The affidavit describes a folder found in the SUV with discovery tied to prior alleged crimes. Police have not publicly detailed every document in the folder or said whether each item had already been known to investigators before White died.
The first public step in the case came when Roosevelt County deputies responded to a tip about a body in a vehicle. They found White in a white SUV on rural abandoned land and called in the Major Crimes Unit. Sheriff’s officials initially described the death as a possible homicide and identified Galvan and Mercedes Salazar, 27, as persons of interest. Ninth Judicial District Attorney Quentin Ray later confirmed the death was a homicide. The sheriff’s office said White was a Clovis woman, though friends said she had also spent time in Farwell. The discovery set off a search for people who could explain her final days.
Investigators set the likely timeline from the evening of May 4 to the morning of May 5. White was last known alive at 7:31 p.m. May 4, when she contacted a family member. Police believe she was shot between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. May 5. Salazar told investigators she had loaned her phone to Galvan the night before, and authorities said that phone was tracked to the area of White’s death during the suspected time frame. The affidavit also says a 9 mm pistol found after Galvan’s arrest appeared to have dried blood on its frame. Investigators said the caliber matched the projectile recovered from White’s body.
The Texas side of the case began May 14 with a stolen pickup. Kip Defoor, a Clovis business owner, received a call from an employee who said his truck had been stolen and he could not come to work. Defoor looked for it, found it on Mabry Drive and followed it. He told authorities the driver realized he was following and fired several shots. Defoor lost the truck in residential streets but alerted police that it was headed toward Farwell. Officers in Farwell found the truck abandoned near a restaurant. That report did not yet prove a link to the homicide, but police soon began connecting the cases.
Farwell Police Chief Larry Kelsay knew White sometimes stayed with Donnie Chancellor, a friend in Farwell. Kelsay learned Chancellor was driving Galvan toward Clovis and asked him to turn back. Officers stopped the vehicle in Farwell. Chancellor got out at police direction, but Galvan allegedly took the driver’s seat and fled. The chase lasted about one minute before the pickup crashed. Galvan was arrested after a brief foot chase, and no one was injured. Police later said surveillance video from a Clovis truck stop tied Galvan to the stolen pickup Defoor had followed, strengthening the Texas case that now precedes his return to New Mexico.
The affidavit also includes statements investigators say Galvan made after White’s death. Police said he confessed to friends that he killed White because she had been threatening him. In a recorded jail call with his mother, Galvan said he knew a friend was setting him up to be caught by police. He also said he considered getting out of the vehicle before the pursuit began, then added that “a part of me … felt I needed to be caught for this stuff.” Investigators are using that call with the physical evidence, the phone tracking and the folder found in the SUV to support the murder charge.
Records cited by investigators describe earlier conflicts between Galvan and White. The two had a longstanding, on-again, off-again relationship that witnesses called volatile. One person said they fought often and had once pointed guns at each other. Police records show White reported in August 2025 that Galvan shot at her or damaged a tire. She reported another incident in April 2026 and said he had burned down a camper where she had been staying. Court records also note that Galvan had previous arrests, including an August 2025 arrest for possession of a firearm or destructive device by a felon. He was released from jail in October 2025 on that charge.
White’s family and friends have described her as more than the victim named in court filings. Shawna Toussaint said White had moved to New Mexico after a breakup and was searching for a new start. Toussaint said White could be hard to reach emotionally but was deeply loyal once she trusted someone. Ashley Hodges, who knew White from Oklahoma for more than 15 years, also described her as complex and protective. Their statements put a human face on a case that otherwise centers on dates, weapon evidence, vehicle movements and a folder investigators say may explain the motive.
The next formal step is tied to jurisdiction. Texas authorities must handle the Farwell pursuit and related charges before Galvan is extradited to New Mexico. Sanchez has said Galvan will remain jailed in Farwell until then. New Mexico prosecutors have not announced a public trial date in the murder case.
Author note: Last updated June 21, 2026.