UPDATE: Farmington officer shoots, kills suspect
State Police investigating incident off Bloomfield Highway
FARMINGTON — An officer for the Farmington Police Department shot and killed a male suspect tonight in southeast Farmington, Chief Steve Hebbe said.
The shooting took place north of the Bloomfield Highway on Riverstone Drive around 6:20 p.m., according to Hebbe.
The male officer involved in the shooting was not injured, Hebbe said.
"These are always extremely tragic," Hebbe said while standing outside the crime scene. "A person lost their life. There are friends and family that are going to be in mourning very soon."
Hebbe arrived at the scene with Farmington City Manager Rob Mayes, who declined comment on the shooting.
More:Farmington police blotter for Dec. 16
Police have closed part of Riverstone Drive as part of the investigation.
The New Mexico State Police have been contacted about the shooting and reportedly are in en route to Farmington to handle the investigation.
"We're not going to know a lot of the facts until the State Police can get up here and conduct their investigation," Hebbe said.
Hebbe declined to comment on what led the officer to make contact with the man before the shooting occurred.
"What exactly led the officer to make contact with them, we'll let the investigators get into that," Hebbe said.
This is the second officer-involved shooting in Farmington this year.
William Wilson was killed on the morning of Aug. 27 by gunshots fired by a San Juan County Sheriff's Office deputy and a New Mexico State Police Officer during a traffic stop at Citizens Bank at 4220 Hudson St.
Wilson retrieved a gun after being handcuffed and fired one shot at Officer Dwayne Simpson's chest, which struck his badge, according to law enforcement officials.
Simpson fired seven rounds, and Deputy Sara Howard fired four rounds at Wilson, striking him an unknown number of times.
Joshua Kellogg covers crime, courts and social issues for The Daily Times. He can be reached at 505-564-4627 or via email at jkellogg@daily-times.com.
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