STATE POLICE SHOOT, KILL MAN NEAR PECOS

Family cites threat of ‘suicide by cop’

“A barrage of gun shots were fired at officers” responding to a report of a man threatening to commit “suicide by cop,” authorities say.

PECOS — A man was killed by New Mexico State Police gunfire about 1:15 a.m. Monday morning after a call reporting an armed and “homicidal” man in Pecos, east of Santa Fe.

Rip S. Huntington, 36, later was reported to police as having threatened to commit suicide or “suicide by cop.”

State Police, in a news release, said Huntington unleashed “a barrage” of gunfire at officers when he was first located and officers approached him in nearby Rowe. He was shot after a two-hour standoff.

The State Police statement is silent on whether some specific provocation by Huntington preceded the shot or shots from police that killed him.

After a 911 call came in at 8:30 p.m., State Police attempted to find the armed man reported to be near Griego’s Market in Pecos, but he was gone. Griego’s manager Miguel Ramirez said Monday afternoon his employees told him they didn’t see anyone in or near the store before a State Police officer arrived Sunday evening, so the 911 caller may have confused the store with another business. “I think we would have heard [someone],” Ramirez said.

A short time later, officers on the scene heard gunshots and then “encountered what they believed to be the suspect’s vehicle,” a red Ford Fusion, the State Police said.

Officers pursued and lost sight of the car before it was found parked on the Interstate 25 frontage road in Rowe, nine miles south of Pecos. As officers

approached, “a barrage” of shots was fired at them and they took cover, according to the news release. The interstate was shut down in both directions.

State Police crisis negotiation and tactical teams were called in. A member of Huntington’s family also showed up, identified Huntington as the gunman and told officers Huntington had been threatening to commit suicide or “suicide by cop.” Officers talked with Huntington on the phone for about two hours.

Huntington told police he was armed and threatened to shoot officers, State Police said. Huntington said he had an AR-15 rifle and a handgun and “plenty of ammo,” and officers could hear “the sound of a firearm being chambered,” according to the news release.

Huntington ended the conversation and refused to surrender, the State Police said. About 1:15 a.m., at least one shot was fired by a member of the tactical team, and Huntington was killed, the news release said.

Huntington had a criminal record that included multiple domestic violence charges. In December 2015, he sued San Miguel County, claiming he’d been attacked by a jail officer in an argument over a woman while on a work detail. The case was dismissed in March by agreement of both sides, a possible indication of a settlement.

This weekend’s shooting is being investigated by the State Police Investigations Bureau. State Police Chief Pete Kassetas did not respond to a call for comment.