Gallup officer stabbed while responding to armed man call at shopping plaza

WINDOW ROCK

A Gallup police officer was stabbed Friday evening while responding to a report of an armed individual at a north Gallup shopping area, according to Gallup Police Chief Erin Toadlena-Pablo.

“The most important thing is our officer is in good condition at this moment, has been released from the hospital,” Toadlena-Pablo said. “He did receive care regarding a stab wound.”

Toadlena-Pablo said the officer received stitches.

The incident occurred at American Heritage Plaza, a shopping area that includes multiple restaurants and fast-food establishments. Police were dispatched after receiving a call about a man reportedly swinging a weapon.

“There was a call that came in in regards to an individual with weapons,” Toadlena-Pablo said. “They gave a description of some clothing that was swinging around, a weapon.”

Toadlena-Pablo said the suspect may have been allegedly brandishing a machete or a knife.

“That was the general call,” she said.

The officer was in the area attempting to locate a person matching the description when he noticed a group of women yelling nearby.

“He went to that area where he then noticed that one of the females was a victim of stabbing in that general area,” Toadlena-Pablo said.

According to the chief, witnesses pointed out a suspect, and the officer made contact. While attempting to turn the individual around, the officer was stabbed.

“As he was turning him around, that’s when he was stabbed himself,” she said.

In addition to the officer, another individual sustained stab wounds. The investigation remains ongoing.

“Our officer is very lucky and there is another individual who was stabbed, and this case right now is currently still under investigation,” Toadlena-Pablo said. “We do have a person of interest in custody right now.”

The individual in custody was undergoing a medical clearance prior to booking. Toadlena-Pablo said no visible injuries were reported.

“There was no shots fired,” she said. “There’s no reported injuries visible, but when we put someone into custody, we want to make sure that when we turn them over to the detention center that we got a (medical) clearance on them.”

The chief also said the incident was not related to any recent drug enforcement operations.

“We didn’t have what we call proactive patrol going on today,” Toadlena-Pablo said. “So there was no drug sweep. It was just generally patrol responding to calls for service.”

Investigators are continuing to interview witnesses and review videos shared by people who were at the scene.

“We’re still looking into conducting some interviews with people who were in the area and people who shared videos with us and just trying to pull all of these pieces together,” Toadlena-Pablo said.

Police expected to release additional information, including potential charges, as the investigation progresses.

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