Police: Charges undetermined for Starbucks robbery, car chase suspect

Other suspect was shot, killed during shootout with law enforcement officers

Detectives will talk to store managers as they determine possible charges for a man accused of robbing a Starbucks and leading law enforcement on a 50-mile chase Friday, Santa Fe police Chief Andrew Padilla said.

Any charges likely would be filed in the middle to end of the coming week, Padilla said in an interview Saturday. He said he didn’t know how much money was taken or the identities of the two suspects.

One of the suspects was shot and killed after she fired at pursuing law enforcement officers, including a Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputy, according to New Mexico State Police. The other, who had been driving, was flown by helicopter to an unidentified trauma center for treatment of gunshot wounds.

Also according to state police:

A Torrance County sheriff’s deputy and a New Mexico State Police officer also fired at the vehicle after the woman fired multiple shots at them. No officers or deputies were hurt.

The chase began after the pair robbed Starbucks on

St. Francis Drive at gunpoint; it reached high speeds on a long, open stretch of U.S. 285 southbound that passes by Lamy but didn’t reach a town or large intersection until Clines Corners, 50 miles south of Santa Fe and 60 miles east of Albuquerque.

The suspects’ vehicle left the road and crashed into a tree about two miles south of Clines Corners. State police and Torrance County Sheriff’s Office deputies had joined the pursuit near Clines Corners.

The driver eventually crawled out of the vehicle and was taken into custody. The woman with him was found dead in the vehicle. The Office of the Medical Investigator will determine her cause and manner of death, as well as her identification.

A 27-mile stretch of U.S. 285 from Interstate 40 to U.S. 60 at Encino was temporarily closed.

Also according to state police:

New Mexico State Police Investigations Bureau agents are investigating the officer-involved shooting.

Investigators learned state police were alerted around 2:30 p.m. that a vehicle was fleeing Santa Fe after the reported armed robbery a short time earlier. The suspects’ vehicle was described as a black Kia passenger car with no license plate.

Shortly after the information was given over police radio, a state police officer saw the vehicle headed north on Cerrillos Road near Jaguar Drive and notified dispatchers. Moments later, a Santa Fe County sheriff’s deputy spotted the vehicle headed south on Richards Avenue and began a chase that led north on Interstate 25, then south on U.S. 285.

The shooting was one of two Friday involving New Mexico law enforcement, prompting investigations, according to the Associated Press. In the other, at least one deputy fired at a man after deputies found a vehicle reportedly involved in a hit-and-run crash, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Department said.