The armed man who was shot after an encounter Monday with a Las Cruces Police officer on Arizona Avenue has been identified as 52-year-old Ernesto S. Sedillo.
The Las Cruces Police-New Mexico State Police SWAT team located Sedillo deceased in the back seat of a black Honda Accord. The SWAT team was activated after the shooting which occurred shortly before 11:30 a.m. on Monday, July 17. At the time officers believed Sedillo, who was armed at the time of the shooting, might still be a threat and was possibly barricaded in the Honda.
The SWAT team made several announcements to Sedillo with no response. The team deployed an audible diversionary device with no reaction from the suspect. The team then approached the vehicle and found Sedillo unresponsive with at least one gunshot wound to his torso. He was pronounced dead at the scene. No shots were fired by any members of the SWAT team.
Shortly before 11:30 a.m. Monday, July 17, Las Cruces Police were dispatched to the report of a suspicious person possibly armed with a knife on the 800 block of Delta Drive.
The first officer to arrive located Sedillo, who matched the description of the suspect, near the Honda that was parked along Arizona Avenue.
By the time the officer approached the vehicle, Sedillo was already in the back seat of the Honda. Within seconds, Sedillo pointed a handgun at the officer who responded by firing multiple rounds at the suspect. The officer retreated to his patrol unit and called for backup, not knowing if the suspect was struck or still a threat.
During the investigation, members of the Officer-Involved Incident Task Force located a 9mm handgun and a knife with Sedillo in the back seat of the Honda.
As is standard procedure for the Las Cruces Police Department, the officer was placed on administrative leave. The officer is a 4-year veteran of the Las Cruces Police Department and, previously, was a deputy with the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office since 2009. The officer was wearing a lapel camera and it was activated during the incident. The video will not be released until completion of the investigation.
Investigators ask anyone with additional information, video or photos of the incident to call police at (575) 526-0795.
The Officer-Involved Incident Task Force includes investigators from the Las Cruces Police Department, New Mexico State Police, the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office and New Mexico State University Police. The task force investigates all officer-involved shootings and reports its findings to the Third Judicial District Attorney’s Office.
Information from Las Cruces Police