According to APD, the three tortured the girl by drugging and raping her.

"They injected this little girl with methamphetamines to make her calm down so they could do what they wanted to do to this little girl," said APD spokesman Tanner Tixier.

She was stabbed and strangled to death. Police say the three then tried to dispose of her lifeless body.

All three are charged with kidnapping, child abuse resulting in death, and tampering with evidence. Gonzales and Kelly face rape charges.

Both Martens and Gonzales were bloodied and bruised during the arrest. Police say it was likely caused by them fighting each other after the murder.

Albuquerque Police Chief Gorden Eden said his officers responded to the apartment around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday for a battery call. Eden said there was some kind of altercation at the apartment and some people involved had serious injuries.

That is also when officers discovered the girl’s body. The department has not released the girl’s name.

Eden wanted people to know his investigators would thoroughly examine the crime scene.

“We are working thoroughly on this case to build the right case, to build the right charges,” he said. “Our investigators are combing through every piece of evidence at this home. We will not rush this investigation.”

KOB reporters at the scene saw investigators focusing on a balcony on a second-story apartment at the complex. They report the APD also brought in a cherry picker for detectives to look down at the apartment’s roof.

A reporter spoke with a woman, Laura Bobbs, who knows the girl very well. She said the girl’s birthday was Tuesday, a day before her body was found. Bobbs said she and the girl planned to celebrate the child’s birthday Wednesday after school with manicures, pedicures and cake.

"Who does this? I counsel people. I council people in grief. I'm a grief counselor. I have a degree in psychology. You would think I would be stronger than this, but when it's you that it happened to, who's going to counsel me? Who's going to help me through this?" Bobbs said.

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez said responded to the child's death, saying, “there are no words that can convey the sorrow and sadness I feel for the innocent child who was killed in this atrocious attack. What happened to this little girl is unspeakable, and justice should come down like a hammer on the monster who committed this murder.”

Editor’s Note: Following an interview that aired Wednesday, Laura Bobbs clarified her educational background. She told KOB on Thursday she is pursuing a degree in psychology and is a licensed minister.