SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Video from Santa Fe Police shows the lengths officers had to go to catch a man accused of causing a multiple-vehicle wreck at one of the city’s busiest intersections.
The Santa Fe Police Department responded to the multiple-vehicle crash near Cerrillos Road and St. Michaels Drive around 7 p.m. in December 2023. A witness claimed a person weaved through traffic, ran a red light, and caused the crash. Witnesses also said the suspect fled.
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About an hour after the crash, police got a tip about the suspect, Irving Valverde, who was reportedly back home. Officers found him armed with a knife. When officers told Valverde to drop the knife, he walked away.
Body camera video showed an officer firing a taser at Valverde and missing. Another officer fired multiple beanbags, hitting Valverde, who continued to walk away.
Valverde then is seen jumping a fence while another taser is deployed by officers, missing him again.
Officers lost track of Valverde until they got a call that he was in his neighbor’s house. Valverde was arrested and was taken to the hospital for his injuries from the beanbag rounds.
Valverde pleaded guilty to two assault charges last month in a deal that also dropped other charges. He’s now serving three years of probation.