An 89-year-old man is suspected of shooting his son Monday morning at The Village at Northrise before being shot by a Las Cruces Police officer.
The man’s 65-year-old son received a gunshot wound to his chest and was pronounced dead at Mountainview Regional Medical Center. The 89-year-old suspect was transported to University Medical Center of El Paso with a gunshot wound to his right hand. His injuries do not appear to be life-threatening. Names will not be released until next of kin can be notified and interviewed.
Preliminary information indicates that there was a possible altercation inside the room between father and son. It is suspected that the 89-year-old shot his son.
A female neighbor apparently heard commotion coming from the 89-year-old’s room and was subsequently taken hostage by the suspect.
Staff of The Hallmark independent living facility at the Village at Northrise, 2882 Roadrunner Parkway, called 911 and police were dispatched to the scene. As police arrived to the second-floor hallway, the armed suspect assaulted officers. One officer fired at least one round and struck the suspect.
Officers then discovered the suspect’s 65-year-old son inside the room, suffering from a gunshot wound to his lower chest. The female resident of the facility suffered a relatively minor non-gunshot injury to a leg. She also was transported to a local hospital.
The investigation is ongoing and charges against the suspect are pending.
As is standard procedure, the officer who fired his duty weapon will be placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
The Officer-involved Incident Task Force is investigating the shooting. The task force includes investigators from New Mexico State Police, Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Office, New Mexico State University Police and Las Cruces Police.
Information from Las Cruces Police