Patrol officers secured the area and called for the SWAT team to respond. Negotiators’ attempts to contact Joseph Rino weren’t successful. Officers obtained a search warrant for the house, then The SWAT team and K9s entered the house and arrested Rino without incident.
From Farmington Police
Thursday, January 8, 2020
Farmington police have a man in custody after a brief SWAT standoff yesterday.
Officers were dispatched around 1:50 p.m. to a residence in the 800 block of East 24th Street regarding a man wanted on felony warrants. Officers arrived and could hear a man and woman fighting inside the home. The woman came out to talk to officers and confirmed that the wanted man, 28-year-old Joseph Rino, was still inside the house.
Patrol officers secured the area and called for the SWAT team to respond. Negotiators’ attempts to contact Rino weren’t successful. Officers obtained a search warrant for the house, then The SWAT team and K9s entered the house and arrested Rino without incident.
Rino was served on the warrants for Aggravated Battery Against a Household Member, False Imprisonment, and Battery Against a Household Member. He was also charged with Resisting, Evading, or Obstructing an officer.
Deputies responded to reports of a shooting and located 18-year-old Elihue Vialpando, who had sustained fatal gunshot wounds. A second victim, Jack Chavez, suffered a gunshot wound to his leg and was transported to San Juan Regional Medical Center for treatment. Witness statements revealed Vialpando brandished a pistol and fired rounds earlier in the night, but based on the timeline of events and witness statements, did not support actions by Thomas Vigil.
The suspect escaped during Sunday afternoon church services. He asked to go to the bathroom and never returned, immediately initiating a count and search of the facility.
This is the first escape in the 31-year history of the jail-based treatment center.
Earlier this week, Jacob Marriott was sentenced after pleading guilty to 4 counts of Manufacturing of Child Pornography (2nd Degree Felony), 1 count of Possession of Child Pornography (4th Degree Felony), and 2 counts of Voyeurism of a Child Under 18 (3rd Degree Felony).
We'll be updating this page with results throughout the evening on Tuesday, June 2, 2026:
These are the unofficial results of the contested NM Primary races in San Juan County on June 2, 2026:
Phase III of the $30 million project includes $27 million in state funds and $3 million in matching funds from San Juan County to fully fund and complete the project by 2029.