Body cam video shows Gallup police shooting armed suspect after a high-speed chase
By: New police body camera video shows officers shooting a man in Gallup last month.
Police have not commented on whether this suspect may have had a gun at the exact moment when they shot him. In the new video, you can hear officers calling out that he has a gun shortly before they shoot him.
When initial reports came out about the shooting, police believed the man led them on a car chase through Gallup before trying to steal another car. But new body camera video shows that’s not exactly what happened.
Newly-released lapel video shows how the night of Dec. 11, 2023, started for a Gallup police officer.
Gallup police were called to a home in west Gallup for what the homeowners told police was trespassing. A man told police he was there to see his girlfriend, but the homeowners say he had been drinking, and they were worried about their safety.
In the video, people can see the officer walk to his patrol unit for the breathalyzer test, and that’s when the man gets in his car and speeds away.
According to police, the officer saw a gun fall out of the man’s car, and the man picked it up and racked it before taking off.
Police say he led officers on a car chase before the man pulled into the Lotaburger on Route 66 and Patton Drive.
A witness told police he was with the man’s sister when the man called and told them about the chase. The witness says the man planned to meet them in the Lotaburger parking lot.
Initially, police thought the man was trying to carjack them. That’s where the video shows the man running to their car before he is shot by police.
In the video, people can see a gun on the ground where the man was shot by police.
According to New Mexico State Police – who took over the investigation – at least one officer fired at least one round at the man.
Neither Gallup police nor state police have identified the man.
Gallup police told KOB 4 the man was out of the hospital. However, they’re “not in a position to comment on his condition.”
So far, we do not see that he’s facing charges – so we’re also not naming him.
The Gallup Police Department did not get back to KOB 4 about the suspect and possible charges. State police did not give us any further updates on the investigation.