Slain Hatch officer graduated from academy in 2013
UPDATE, Saturday August 13th, 2016, 2:29 P.M
Photos provided by the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office show Hatch Police Officer Jose Chavez at his graduation from the Law Enforcement Academy on Oct. 31st, 2013.
PREVIOUS STORY:
A long line of law enforcement vehicles accompanied the body of Officer Jose Chavez from University Medical Center in El Paso to the medical examiner’s office in Albuquerque on Saturday.
The vehicles had their lights and sirens on as they escorted the body of the 2-year veteran of the Hatch Police Department who was killed while on duty Friday afternoon.
Chavez, 33, leaves behind a wife and two children.
Doa Ana County Sheriff’s investigators said Chavez was shot byJesse D. Hanes during a traffic stop Friday afternoon. Hanes is charged with willful and deliberate first-degree murder, with additional charges pending. Hanes was arrested in Doa Ana County along with two other suspects, whom deputies only described as a white man and a black man.
Hanes is also a suspect in the killing of a 62-year-old man, Theodore Timmons, in Ohio. Timmons was shot in his home several times on July 25.
As the investigation continues, messages of support for the Chavez family and the Hatch Police Department are pouring in from across the country.
Las Cruces Police posted on their Facebook page: “The men and women of LCPD (extend) our collective thoughts and prayers to officer Chavez’s family, friends and his brothers and sisters in blue who grieve for his passing. Today and always we stand with Hatch Police.”
U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce (R-N.M.), who represents the area, in a statement said the news is heartbreaking: “This reminds us all what is at risk as our police officers patrol and protect our streets. It should not be this way.”
The Livermore Police Officers Association in California posted in part: “He IS a true hero. Officer Chavez was taken all too early from his wife and two young children.”
Las Cruces Police Chief Jamie Montoya is reportedly working with N.M. Gov. Susana Martinez to have flags flown at half-staff in honor of Chavez.
ORIGINAL STORY:
A carjacking and high-speed chase Friday ended with a Hatch Police Officer shot and the closure of I-25 in between Las Cruces and Hatch.
Late Friday, the mayor of Hatch identified the wounded officer as Jose Chavez, a second-year officer. Chavez was shot in the neck, Mayor Andy Nunez said.
Medics worked on Chavez for about 30 minutes before he was airlifted to El Paso. “He appeared to be in pretty good shape,” Nunez said.
Investigators confirm all three suspects are in custody and the highway is once again open.
Kelly Jameson, a Doa Ana County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman clarified late Friday it all started during a routine traffic stop about 3:40 p.m. in Hatch.
Chavez, the Hatch police officer, pulled the suspects over on Franklin Street near “Franciscan RV,” a small business. A man inside the car exited and shot Chavez, Jameson said. A second police officer arriving at the scene witnessed the shooting and called for backup.
The second officer tried to pursue the suspects, but was not able to capture them since they were driving in excess of 100 miles per hour, Jameson said.
Shortly after 4 p.m., the suspects exited at a rest stop near Radium Springs, where one of the three exited the vehicle and allegedly carjacked a red Chevrolet Cruze that was parked at the rest stop. The owner of the vehicle was also shot and had to be airlifted to University Medical Center in El Paso.
Sheriff’s deputies spotted the Cruze, then deployed a tire-deflating device which successfully flattened the vehicle’s tires.
About 5 p.m., the vehicle eventually turned into a residence in the 23000 block of N.M. 185. The suspect allegedly crashed the vehicle into a pile of wood and briefly barricaded himself in the vehicle before surrendering to sheriff’s deputies.
Deputies learned the suspect had suffered a gunshot wound to the right thigh.
Meanwhile, a passerby in the Rincon area alerted sheriff’s deputies to two subjects “acting suspicious” near the 2400 block of Rincon. Deputies responded and arrested two men believed to be involved in the shooting and carjacking at about 7 p.m. The suspects were transported to the Doa Ana County Sheriff’s Department for questioning.
The male suspect who suffered the injury to his leg is being treated at a hospital. He is under police supervision and will be arrested when doctors release him.
The three men are now at the Doa Ana County Detention Center.
New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas released a statement to ABC-7 following the death of Officer Jose Chavez:
“All of New Mexico stands with the Chavez family, the Hatch Police Department and southern New Mexico after the horrific death of Officer Jose Chavez. We offer our prayers, thoughts and condolences and stand ready to assist the family and our brothers and sisters in law enforcement in Dona Aa County.”
