New Mexico Officer Critically Injured, 3 Others Struck in Shooting

ALBUQUERQUE, NM—Three officers were shot and another was injured by shrapnel or glass Thursday morning, setting off a massive manhunt through Northeast Albuquerque.

At a news conference at the scene, officials said one officer was shot in the upper chest and is in critical condition at the University of New Mexico Hospital. That officer is in surgery. A second officer was shot in the arm and a third in the vest.

The families of all officers involved have been notified.

There are no suspects on the loose as of a 12:30 p.m., police say.

Rebecca Atkins, an Albuquerque Police Department spokesperson, said the agency would not be responding to any non-emergency calls while the incident is being investigated.

The situation unfolded near the Federico's Mexican Food restaurant on the 1100 block of Juan Tabo.

Officers were responding to a call of a robbery of a person at Dutch Bros. One of the suspects was shot on scene, but that individual's condition was not immediately released.

Richard Griego, a manager of the Goodwill across the street from Federico's, said he was in his car when he heard what he thought was a car backfire.

Then he saw "puffs" of bullets hitting the adobe wall of the Federico's and 20-30 gunshots rang out as officers in the Dutch Bros parking lot exchanged gunfire with suspects outside Federico's.

Soon after, Griego said, officers and first responders converged on the area.

Leighanne Begay and Garrett Bradley said they pulled up to Dutch Bros Coffee as police converged on the area.

Bradley said they saw a body under a white sheet being lifted by first responders and police into a waiting ambulance.

Begay said a woman at the scene told her she was getting coffee from Dutch Bros when a multitude of gunshots rang out.

Begay said the woman told her she jumped into a stranger's car and the two sped off as officers with assault rifles engaged a suspect.

A police helicopter, small plane and drone circled a neighborhood to the west and officers in an armed vehicle could be seen driving fast into the neighborhood.

An officer with an assault rifle hung out of a top hatch of the vehicle.

Onlookers gathered in parking lots and on nearby business roofs south of the scene on Juan Tabo. Mayor Tim Keller and District Attorney Raúl Torrez were also at the scene.

Shelby Slack and Nick Bunch live about a mile from the scene and said they heard a couple of gunshots around 9:15 am.

Then they heard about 20 shots "in quick succession" and the blaring of sirens.

They said they knew immediately from the sound of it that something bad had happened.

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