Albuquerque Police shootout
| Albuquerque Police shootout | |
|---|---|
| Location | Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 665: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). |
| Date | Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 665: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). |
| Target | Police Officers and Sheriff's deputies |
| Weapon | AK-47 |
| Deaths | 1 (the perpetrator) |
Non-fatal injuries | 4 |
| Perpetrator | Christopher Chase[1] |
On October 26, 2013, Christopher Chase, a 35-year-old former army veteran armed with an AK-47 and wearing body armor, targeted Albuquerque Police Department officers and Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office deputies and led them on a 16-mile pursuit before crashing into a gas station and being killed by police officers. He was only able to injure three APD officers and one BCSO deputy.
Events
The gunman asked people to call 911 so he could kill police officers. The first to respond, 32-year-old Officer Eric Martinez, a 9-year veteran with the Albuquerque Police Department, arrived on the scene. As Martinez got closer to the location of the gunman, the gunman ambushed Martinez with gunfire; a bullet grazed Martinez's left leg, and Martinez was able to retreat and return fire.
Officers Robert Carlson and Steve Lowell approached from the opposite direction to try to take down the gunman, but the latter saw them and fired on them. The gunman carjacked Martinez's police vehicle and took off from the scene. That was when Field Training Officer Sharon Saavedra and rookie Officer Tracy Drager (the day of the shooting was her first day on the job) approached the scene. The gunman fired at them from Martinez's stolen patrol car; a bullet missed Saavedra's head and struck one of Saavedra's patrol vehicle tires. Saavedra returned fire with her shotgun.
The police officers didn't know which patrol vehicle the gunman had taken. 31-year-old Officer Dan Morales, a 10-year veteran with the Albuquerque Police Department, was half a mile from the scene when he saw Martinez's stolen patrol vehicle and reported to dispatch that he identified the stolen police patrol vehicle as Martinez's stolen patrol vehicle. After making his report, the gunman slowed down and then fired at Morales's patrol vehicle and hit Morales in the left ankle. The gunman was chased by Sgt. Shawn Lockey, Officers Simon Drobik and Dan Calt, and Deputy John Osborne.
The gunman ran away for three blocks and fired again. 28-year-old Officer Matt Hannum, a 9-year veteran with the Albuquerque Police Department, was hit in the left thigh. Hannum's fellow officers used their belts to stop the bleeding. The gunman ran away for a mile; he was near Schulte Street when 45-year-old Deputy Robin Hopkins, a 15-year veteran with the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office, tried to intercept the gunman, but the latter opened fire on Deputy Hopkins, hitting her in the left femur.
Hopkins stopped her vehicle in front of the Bernalillo County Fire Department building. Sgt. Lockey and Deputy Osborne dropped out of the pursuit to help Hopkins along with BCFD Engineer Alex Croiz and his partners, who got out of the building to try to help Hopkins.
Officers Drobik and Calt continued the pursuit; Sgt. Bruce Werley and Deputy Officer James Burton made a roadblock at 4th Street & Montaño Road to hold the gunman. The gunman opened fire on the officers, forcing them to take cover. Officer Burton fired at Martinez's stolen patrol vehicle tires, but the tires were never hit. Officer Calt took his AR-15, put it on the dash of his car, and opened fire. The gunman was hit twice in his left arm and went through a Phillips 66 gas station and crashed into a metal barrier that protected a gas pump. Officer Calt rammed his patrol car from behind so the gunman couldn't get back. Officer Calt opened fire from his AR-15, and Officer Drobik opened fire from his service pistol, and Officer Luke McPeek opened fire from his shotgun, and the gunman was killed by heavy gunfire.[2]
The gunman
The gunman was identified as 35-year-old Christopher Alan Chase (February 4, 1978 - October 26, 2013), a former army veteran. He was born on February 4, 1978, in the countryside of Maryland, joined the United States Army in 1996, and served until 1998. He had a criminal history ranging from misdemeanor to felony charges. That history includes embezzlement, fraud, and traffic violations. In 1998, he was arrested for not having a valid license; in 2000, he was arrested for eluding police and disorderly conduct; and then in 2004, he was charged with conspiracy and embezzlement between $2,000-$2,500. He pled no contest to embezzlement. He had a “cop killer” tattoo; he also had a tattoo of a demon with two guns on his back, tattoos of the Joker and also cards on his left and right arms, a Chinese character on his neck, and a tattoo of a juggalo, associated with rap group Insane Clown Posse, on his abdomen. At the time of his death, he lived in the 800 block of Walter SE. The motive for his crime is still unknown. According to the autopsy, he was shot twice in his left arm, once in his scalp, three times in his neck near his sternum, once in his upper back, and once in the back of his head.
Aftermath
The officers, deputies, and fire department men who were involved in the shootout were honored for their heroism. Officers Matthew Hannum and Eric Martinez were released from the hospital hours after the shootout. Officer Dan Morales was released three days after the shootout. Deputy Robin Hopkins was released two months after the shootout. All of the officers, deputies, and fire department men returned to work, except for Deputy Hopkins, who was forced to retire due to her injuries. Officer Dan Calt is still working with the Albuquerque Police Department but chose not to work as a patrol officer again due to the events of that day.
References
- ↑ "Albuquerque shootout: Suspect identified as Christopher Chase". October 28, 2013. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
- ↑ "Albuquerque shootout: The Injued Officers and Duputies". October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
 | This crime-related article is a stub. You can help EverybodyWiki by expanding it. |
This article "Albuquerque Police shootout" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Albuquerque Police shootout. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
