LCPD Mourns Loss Of Patrol Officer

Officer Anthony Sepulveda?s patrol unit is now empty, displayed in front of the Las Cruces Police Department. Considered his closest companion on the job, the car is acting as a ?silent witness? to the service provided to the community for the past five years.

People stopped by Thursday to pay their respects. One woman said her child owes his life to him.

“Without him, my son would not be alive today,” a woman, who did not want to be identified, said.

Holding a handwritten note, the woman said the short time she knew Sepulveda changed her entire life.

“This is Las Cruces’s finest officer there is,? she said. ?I feel like I lost my best friend.”

A few weeks ago, she said, her 9-year-old daughter left some marbles on the floor, when her 9-month-old son picked one up and swallowed it.

“He got the marble out of my son’s throat; he gave him CPR,? she said. ?He saved my son’s life.”

Fellow officers and residents paying their respects Thursday said it was Sepulveda?s character to go above and beyond the line of duty.

“My daughter was traumatized hysterically. He took 45-minutes to sit and explain to her that it was an accident,” the woman said.

Sepulveda?s sister, Sonia, said he dedicated his life to helping others.

“It makes me proud to be his sister. We were all very proud of him and he was proud to do what he was doing,? Sonia said. ?I don’t know how many lives he touched, but I’m sure it was many because he loved what he did.”

Sonia said her brother died suddenly after suffering what appears to have been a massive brain aneurism.

“Typically, as police officers, we’re always concerned about the dangers that go on out on the streets, the calls we go to, the traffic stops we make? and so it was just a shock that he would fall ill to something like this,” Sergeant Ralph Monget said.

While the shock sets in, heartfelt memories are forever in the hearts of those who knew him.

“He always had a big smile on his face and I always used to comment to him that I really enjoyed seeing his smile, and he used to tell me, ?Only for you, Serg,?” Monget said.

Officer Sepulveda?s viewing is Monday at Getz Funeral Home from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., followed by a rosary. Mass on Tuesday will be held at 10:00 a.m. at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Cathedral. His burial will follow at Hillcrest Memorial Gardens Cemetery.