APD says man in critical condition after SWAT standoff

Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina on Monday released police video and details of a SWAT standoff earlier in the day, during which a man set a fire and critically injured himself.

Police don’t know whether the man will survive.

“The reason we wanted to have this update was in the interest of transparency to show to the public and make sure there’s an understanding as to what occurred,” Medina said at a Monday afternoon news conference.

Albuquerque police were called around 8 a.m. Monday to the 7300 block of Boxwood NE on a domestic violence call. A man who had been released from the Metropolitan Detention Center the day before was in a domestic dispute where he choked his mother and also fought with his sister, Medina said.

The police chief said the women left the house and a SWAT standoff ensued before Stiven Katicic, 34, was taken into custody. He suffered from smoke inhalation because of the fire. He was taken to a local hospital, where he was intubated. Medina said police didn’t know if Katicic would survive.

Police released video Monday from a robot with a camera inside the home, which they had somehow sent in. The video shows the suspect holding a towel or cloth, which is on fire, around a corner in front of the camera. Minutes later, the video shows the house filling with smoke .

Medina said police didn’t shoot any munitions into the house.

Gilbert Gallegos, a police spokesman, said police had been aware that Katicic had started fires before and had alerted Albuquerque Fire Rescue. He said they responded within minutes of Katicic starting the fire.

Police officials said their response on Monday was affected by a deadly fire set by SWAT officers about a year ago.

During that incident, a smoke canister spray can was thrown by law enforcement officers into a home in Albuquerque during a SWAT standoff. It torched the building and a 15-year-old, Brett Rosenau, died of smoke inhalation.

APD Deputy Chief Mike Smathers said for the last year the SWAT team has increased how much it trains with Albuquerque Fire Rescue and tactical officers now have better access to firefighting tools.

“I can assure you that each member of the team is real attentive to paying attention to any signs of fire,” Smathers said.

Albuquerque police are currently nearing the end of a decade-long reform effort, brought on after the Department of Justice determined in 2014 that Albuquerque police had a pattern of excessive force, which included police shootings. The SWAT team was one of several aspects of the department that were signaled out by the DOJ, and required to complete specific reforms.