Police: Man Pointed Pistol At Officers

An Albuquerque police officer said he refrained from firing his weapon at an armed man late Thursday to avoid striking another officer parked near the fleeing suspect, police said.

Brandon Joseph Cardenas, 29, allegedly pointed a 9 mm handgun at both officers as he ran through the parking lot of an Albuquerque apartment complex, according to a police report.

Police arrested Cardenas on two counts of aggravated assault on a police officer, possession of a firearm by a felon and other charges. He remained in the Bernalillo County jail late Friday.

An officer confronted Cardenas in a parking lot of an apartment complex in the 12000 block of Skyline NE late Thursday after a resident identified Cardenas in an assault, police wrote in an incident report.

Cardenas allegedly pointed a pistol at the officer, then ran in the direction of a police cruiser driven by a second officer, “preventing me from engaging the male with deadly force,” the first officer wrote.

Cardenas allegedly pointed his pistol at the second officer as he ran past the cruiser, police wrote.

Cardenas eluded police for several hours as a SWAT team set up a perimeter around the complex. Officers arrested Cardenas as he tried to drive away from the complex, police said.
— This article appeared on page C2 of the Albuquerque Journal