Update: Man Killed after Police Standoff

The preliminary investigation indicates that San Juan County Sheriff's Office (SJCSO) Deputies and FPD officers responded to the Motel 6, located at 1600 E. Bloomfield Boulevard in Farmington, after observing a vehicle belonging to a wanted suspect out of Colorado. The suspect, Andrew Rossi (25), had a warrant for his arrest out of Ignacio, Colorado on charges of Aggravated Battery with a Deadly Weapon. The FPD SWAT Team responded and officers determined the motel room in which the suspect was staying. Officers obtained a search warrant to enter the motel room. A female subject exited the m

From NM State Police:

Around 2:00 this morning, the Farmington Police Department (FPD) requested the New Mexico State Police Investigations Bureau to investigate a police shooting involving a FPD officer.

The preliminary investigation indicates that San Juan County Sheriff's Office (SJCSO) Deputies and FPD officers responded to the Motel 6, located at 1600 E. Bloomfield Boulevard in Farmington, after observing a vehicle belonging to a wanted suspect out of Colorado. The suspect, Andrew Rossi (25), had a warrant for his arrest out of Ignacio, Colorado on charges of Aggravated Battery with a Deadly Weapon.

The FPD SWAT Team responded and officers determined the motel room in which the suspect was staying. Officers obtained a search warrant to enter the motel room. A female subject exited the motel room and told officers Rossi was inside the motel room and did not want to surrender.

FPD announced their presence andattempted to negotiate with Rossi to exit the room and peacefully surrender; however, Rossi failed to surrender. Around 1:00 a.m., FPD officers entered the motel room and shots were fired by at least one FPD officer, striking Rossi. Rossi sustained fatal gunshot wounds and later died after being transported to a local hospital.

 Details of this investigation are still preliminary.  Additional information will not be released until after all interviews have been conducted. The name of the officer(s) involved will not be released until the completion of the interviews. This incident remains under investigation with no further information available.

From Farmington Police:

Farmington police responded to the Motel 6 on Bloomfield Boulevard Monday night in reference to a suspect who was wanted by the Ignacio Police Department. The suspect had a felony warrant for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. At approximately 8:45 p.m. the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office located the suspect’s vehicle and confirmed that he was staying at the motel. Farmington Police Department’s SWAT team and crisis negotiation team responded shortly after. The suspect, a 25-year-old male from Colorado, was inside one of the motel rooms along with his mother. His mother came out of the room at approximately 10:18 p.m. SWAT officers began making announcements for the suspect to come out. Around 10:56 p.m. an FPD crisis negotiator attempted to make contact with the suspect by phone, but the suspect would not answer. The negotiator continued to call until around 11:56 p.m. No contact was ever made with the suspect. Detectives obtained a search warrant for the room and just before 1:00 a.m. SWAT slowly made entry into the room. Officers were able to hear movement in the ceiling and again made multiple attempts to get him to come out. SWAT officers began removing the ceiling tile and the suspect fell out. Once on the ground, he immediately stood up and charged officers with a knife. An officer fired his duty weapon striking the suspect. Medical aid was immediately rendered and the suspect was transported to San Juan Regional Medical Center where he later succumbed to his injuries.

The New Mexico State Police are responding to take over the investigation. More information will be released as the State Police investigation unfolds. Chief Hebbe said, “While it’s unfortunate that the suspect chose not to end this peacefully, we are extremely relieved and grateful that none of our officers or any other civilians were harmed.”