New Mexico village cop slain; motorist shot; 3 in custody

A man accused of aggravated murder in OH has been arrested in southern New Mexico for allegedly shooting and killing a local police officer during a traffic stop, officials said on Saturday.

A police officer in Hatch, New Mexico was shot and killed Friday during a traffic stop.

Sheriff’s deputies spotted the Cruze, pursued it and were able to slow it down with “stop sticks”; the suspect crashed the vehicle into a pile of wood and briefly barricaded himself in the auto before surrendering to sheriff’s deputies, Jameson said.

Police say two others were in the vehicle when Hanes shot Chavez before fleeing, carjacking a man at a rest stop, shooting him.

James D. Nelson II and Jesse Hanes are wanted in Ohio in connection to the July shooting death of 62-year-old Londonderry, Ohio, resident, Theodore Timmons, the Chillicothe Gazette reported.

They were caught after the murder of 33-year-old Hatch police officer Jose Chavez.

Sheriff’s deputies spotted Hanes in the stolen vehicle and pursued, slowing it down by deflating the tires.

“During the traffic stop, a passenger who was in that vehicle reportedly exited the vehicle and fired shots at the officer”, Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Kelly Jameson said. Officials did not immediately know how the men had made it there, The Albuquerque Journal reported.

The pair then ditched the vehicle.

Hanes was sought in OH in the July 25 shooting death of a 62-year-old man just outside Chillicothe, about 60 miles south of Columbus.

The suspected shooter is Hanes, 38, who along with Nelson was wanted in OH in the July 25 shooting death of a 62-year-old man just outside Chillicothe, about 60 miles south of Columbus. The two were fugitive suspects in a July shooting in Londonderry, Ohio.

“We’re all one law enforcement family, and it’s important that we make ourselves available to those officers and rally around them so that department has some time to grieve and not have to be on duty”, Jameson said. “The suspect was unable to control that vehicle, and it crashed into a pile of wood and came to rest”, she said. Deputies were able to locate those men, who are suspected to be the other two men involved in the case.

With time, carjacking became a criminal activity on its own since thieves could steal personal belongings and the auto as a valuable object. Witnesses said they heard approximately six shots.