ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A New Mexico State Police Officer was shot during a police pursuit Friday along a highway just east of Albuquerque, and authorities arrested two suspects for the crime on Saturday.
Caleb Elledge, 24 and Alanna Martinez, 22, were taken into custody after being tracked to a home in McIntosh. Elledge has a violent criminal history, according to New Mexico State Police.
The wounded officer suffered non-life-threatening injuries, according to authorities. The unnamed officer was transported to an area hospital in Albuquerque and has since been released, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
The sequence of events began when NMSP responded to an Edgewood gas station Friday about 8:15 a.m. regarding suspicious circumstances involving a female locked inside the restroom.
The responding officer discovered Martinez in a car with Elledge, the driver, who drove in reverse and rammed the front end of the officer’s patrol unit prior to fleeing the scene, Fox reported.
A pursuit took place and the officer used a PIT maneuver to disable the vehicle on State Road 333 near Sedillo Hill.
Martinez and Elledge exited the vehicle before Elledge fired shots at the officer, striking him, according to law enforcement authorities. Court records indicated the injured officer was shot in his neck, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
“Despite being injured, the supervisor was able to recover and return fire at the suspect,” according to NMSP. “The male and female suspects fled on foot east from the scene.”
Details of the arrest at the home in McIntosh in Torrance County remain unclear, other than police received a tip that proved fruitful.
State Police Chief Tim Johnson said during a news conference Saturday evening that at least three guns were recovered during the search warrant at 31 Juana Lane and three other men were arrested by NMSP on various charges, unrelated to the shooting, during the investigation.
According to police, Elledge told investigators that he fled from the officer because he “didn’t want to go back to prison” and fired at least eight rounds.
Elledge had been on the run for several months after cutting off his ankle monitor last year, the Journal reported, citing court records.
“During the course of the investigation, it was revealed Elledge has a violent criminal history which consists of multiple arrest warrants, Shooting at or from a Motor Vehicle (Great Bodily Harm), Aggravated Fleeing a Law Enforcement Officer, Assault (Unlawful Acts, Threats or Conduct of a Household Member), Assault (Attempted Battery of a Household Member),” police said.
During a news conference Saturday, Johnson said he hopes one of the guns seized during the investigation was the one used in the shooting “to make this case bulletproof.”
Johnson said the injured officer is a lieutenant who is identified by his initials in court records. He left the hospital on Saturday and returned home to his family to further recover.
Elledge is charged with several crimes, which include assault with intent to commit a violent felony on a peace officer, tampering with evidence, aggravated battery on a peace officer (great bodily harm), possession of a firearm or a destructive device by a felon, and criminal damage to property (over $1000).
NMSP said Martinez is charged with harboring or aiding a felon, Fox reported.
