8-31-2024 1:49am

White Sands Mall Incident Thursday Leads to Officer Involved Shooting Death

Chris Edwards Editor

On August 29, 2024, an incident occured at White Sands Mall in Alamogordo thst resulted in an an officer involved shooting of an assailant as reported in a story by AlamogordoTownNews.org.

In a press release on Friday, the New Mexico State Police Investigations Bureau states that they were requested to investigate an officer-involved shooting involving the Las Cruces Police Department (LCPD) incident that occurred at White Sands Mall in Alamogordo, New Mexico.

Investigations Bureau agents learned that at around 7:30 p.m., a New Mexico State Police officer conducted a traffic stop on a Dodge pickup truck on US54 near mile post 75. The driver of the truck was identified as Wallace Gonzales age 41. During the traffic stop, the officer observed multiple firearms on the dashboard of the vehicle. Gonzales then made threating statements that he was going to shoot the officer.

Gonzales fled from the traffic stop and a pursuit ensued. The pursuit ended when Gonzales pulled into the White Sands mall parking lot in Alamogordo, New Mexico. The Las Cruces Police Department SWAT team and NMSP Tactical Team responded to the scene along with support from the Alamogordo Police Department which ordered a evacuation of several mall stores and a stay in place.

White Sands Blvd in Alamogordo was partially shut down from the Taco Bell to the fairgrounds area for about 3 hours as reported the night of the incident by AlamogordoTownNews.org

Officers began communication with Gonzales for approximately 3 hours in an attempt to deescalate the situation and have him exit the truck peacefully. Gonzales still refused to obey officers’ commands. At some point during communication with Gonzales, gunfire was exchanged and a LCPD SWAT officer fired at least one round from their department issued rifle.

As officers approached the truck, Gonzales was found unresponsive with an apparent gunshot wound. He also had a firearm in each hand. Once the weapons were secured, paramedics rendered aid, but Gonzales succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased on scene by the Office of the Medical Investigator. No officers were injured during this incident.

The LCPD officer will not be identified by the New Mexico State Police. For information on their duty status. The Las Cruces Police Department may release thst information at a later time.

New Mexico State Police Investigations Bureau agents are working to independently determine the series of events leading to the shooting, including collecting evidence and conducting interviews. Throughout the process, investigative findings will be shared with the district attorney for review.

The New Mexico State Police acts solely as a factfinder in officer involved shootings and does not determine whether an officer’s actions were justified. That decision rests with the district attorney’s office. This incident remains under investigation by the New Mexico State Police

This incident marks the second death st the hands of a police officer in Otero County within the last 6 weeks. The other death under investigation that is in the hands of the district attorney is the death of 17 year old Elijah Hadley by a Otero County Deputy Sheriff which has caused a community uproar in unanswered questions.

Gun violence in Alamogordo and Otero County continues to rise with political leaders blaming immigration concerns however none of the officer involved shootings in Otero County have involved immigrants this year, each involved local known residents. Stay tuned for further information and insight as the investigation unfolds.