Deputies fatally shoot man near Walmart in South Valley

The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office released few specifics after deputies shot and killed a man Tuesday afternoon in a bustling Walmart parking lot in the South Valley.

A BCSO official did not answer several questions, including whether the man was armed, or say what led deputies to shoot him. No deputies were injured in the incident.

Detective Kevin Carhart, during a news conference, said around 11 a.m., BCSO was alerted to a stolen vehicle in the Walmart parking lot being driven by a man with an out-of-state felony warrant for his arrest. When asked, Carhart did not say what specifically the warrant was for.

“Based on information obtained from the warrant, the suspect was considered armed and dangerous,” BCSO spokeswoman Jayme Gonzales said in a Tuesday evening news release. She did not say what the information was.

After deputies attempted to contact the driver, “an encounter between deputies and the suspect ensued,” Gonzales said. Then “at least one” deputy fired “at least one shot,” Carhart said. The man’s identity was not released as deputies need to notify his next of kin, he said.

There are no “outstanding suspects,” Gonzales said in a news release sent almost two hours after the shooting occurred at the commercial site near Coors and Rio Bravo SW. The Multi-Agency Task Force is investigating the shooting.

There is no timeline on how long the investigation will take, Carhart said.

“We assure the public that this will be a thorough and transparent process,” Gonzales said. “Scene processing continues, and further information will be shared with the public in a scheduled press conference in the upcoming weeks.”

Deputy vehicles and crime scene tape surrounded a white truck in the Walmart parking lot. At least three bullet holes could be seen in the pickup’s windshield.

Beside the driver’s side door, a man’s body could be seen on the ground, his shirt and pants having been cut away.