ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – He was behind the wheel with a police handcuff on his wrist. Now, newly released video showed the moment that suspect took off after a New Mexico State Police (NMSP) officer pulled him over for driving without tires. KRQE News 13 obtained the video which shows how officers stopped the suspect by tackling him in the middle of a busy Albuquerque street.
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On an early Friday morning in September, an NMSP officer tried to pull over a red Jeep for driving on its rims. A struggle ensued with the suspect, Stephen Watts, refusing to turn off his car. Not listening to the officer, Watts told the officer his family lives nearby. Before the officer manages to latch handcuffs on the suspect’s wrist, Watts took off.
A car chase ensued in the area of San Mateo, Pan American, and Osuna. Another officer joined the chase and did a pit maneuver, spinning the car to a stop. However, that didn’t stop Watts’ efforts to get away: he hopped out and ran on foot, but officers caught up to him and tackled him to the ground.
As officers arrest him, Watts keeps asking to call his brother, and told police: “Sir, I was right here, right where, right where I live.”
While police put him in the back of a unit, others searched his Jeep and found evidence he’d been drinking: “A Smirnoff Ice Smash, eight percent alcohol, half. Center console,” on officer can be heard noting on lapel video as he pours the contents out.
The morning’s events culminate in Watts’ arrest. He refused a breath test on the scene, but police noted a smell of alcohol and his bloodshot eyes. He would later give police a breath test, which registered his blood alcohol level at twice the legal limit.
Watts’ charges for that morning include aggravated DWI, fleeing law enforcement, and driving without a license.