89-year-old man shoots and kills 65-year-old son at Las Cruces retirement community, police say

Las Cruces Police accuse an 89-year-old man of shooting and killing his 65-year-old son Monday morning at the Village at Northrise retirement community.

A Las Cruces Police officer then shot the 89-year-old.

Names of those involved in the incident have not been released, pending notificiation of next of kin.

Police say that at about 11 a.m. Monday there was a possible altercation inside the room between father and son when the father allegedly shot his son in the chest.

A female neighbor heard the commotion coming from the 89-year-old’s room and was then taken hostage by the suspect.

Staff at The Hallmark independent living facility at the Village at Northrise called 911 and police were sent to the scene.

As police arrived to the second-floor hallway, the armed suspect allegedly assaulted officers and one officer fired at least one round and struck the suspect.

The son was taken to Mountainview Regional Medical Center in Las Cruces where he was pronounced dead.

The father was transported to University Medical Center of El Paso with a gunshot wound to his right hand. Police say his injuries do not appear to be life-threatening.

The female resident of the facility suffered what police called a relatively minor non-gunshot injury to a leg. She also was transported to a local hospital.

The investigation is ongoing and charges against the suspect are pending.

As is standard procedure, the officer who fired his duty weapon will be placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

The Officer-involved Incident Task Force is investigating the shooting. The task force includes investigators from New Mexico State Police, Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office, New Mexico State University Police and Las Cruces Police.