Police: No gun found where officer shot man in shooting stance

RIO RANCHO, N.M. — Rio Rancho police said they couldn’t find a gun in an area where an officer shot someone allegedly found in a shooting stance during a call Saturday night.

Around 6:20 p.m. Saturday Rio Rancho police officers responded to a report of a “domestic violence incident in progress” in the 7000 block of Albany Hills Drive. The caller, identified as a person under 18 years old, said a man was hitting a woman and pulling her hair.

Officers arrived and learned the suspect ran away. They allege there was an active felony arrest warrant out for him.

Eventually, an officer found the suspect in an open space near Enchanted Hills Boulevard and Bismark Hills Way. Investigators allege the suspect took a “stance consistent with shooting a gun,” prompting the officer to take cover behind his vehicle.

A viewer who filmed the encounter sent it to KOB 4. A man could be heard telling police to shoot him as officers commanded him to show his hands.

A gunshot then rang out, striking the suspect in the chest.

Police identified the suspect as Audelio Lopez, of Española. Lopez is now receiving care in the hospital and is expected to survive, police say.

Police said they didn’t find a gun at the scene. They said he was “using his body stance and hands to mimic the presence of a firearm.”

The officer who fired the shot is on paid administrative leave. Police aren’t identifying the officer, pending a formal interview as a part of the investigation.

Police said they’re relying on witness video as the officer’s body camera didn’t activate during the event.

Once doctors release Lopez from the hospital, authorities will book him into the Sandoval County Detention Center for the warrant. He also faces new charges for the incident Saturday.

An investigation is ongoing.

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