GRANTS, NM—New Mexico State Police (NMSP) are investigating an officer involved shooting incident that occurred near San Fidel.
Two deputies from the Cibola County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) were involved in the shooting incident which resulted in the death of retired volunteer firefighter Albert Morgan following a domestic violence call.
Despite public concerns, critical details such as the number of rounds fired, the types of firearms recovered, and other information has not yet been disclosed. To access this information, the Cibola Citizen has filed an Inspection of Public Records Act (IPRA) request to obtain additional information about the shooting.
The Shooting
According to publicly available records, CCSO deputies were dispatched to a remote area near Forest Road 400. on August 16, 2024, after a woman was seen running on the side of the road. The moon was in a waxing gibbous phase, roughly between a full moon and a half moon. This incident occurred at approximately 1:30 a.m., as the moonset began.
Officers, in a CCSO-issued police vehicle, drove up to the scene and found the woman, who claimed she had been in a domestic dispute with Morgan, who was later identified as the male subject shot in the fatal encounter.
The two argued verbally in front of and with officers, with the woman alleging she had been assaulted by Morgan.
The situation began to escalate when the deputies questioned Morgan about the woman’s allegations.
In an exchange recorded on body cameras mandated by state law, Morgan handed over his identification but grew increasingly agitated with deputies. When asked for his side of the story, as they separated the woman and man by putting her in the back of the police vehicle, Morgan made a troubling statement.
“Why don’t you tell them that I have a gun, and I’m going to go get it.”
Tensions escalated quickly as Morgan is seen walking to his vehicle, opening the driver’s side door, grabbing an item out of a compartment on the side of the door.
With an arm behind his back, Morgan walks towards law enforcement. Deputies are heard repeatedly ordering Morgan to “Drop the weapon,” “Drop it dude.”
Morgan is seen walking toward officers, one palm open face toward officers, wiggling his fingers. The light from vehicles was shining on him. Morgan is then seen squatting to one knee, his right hand and arm close and low to his waist, with his left hand and arm still behind his back. He opens his palm to officers multiple times.
In a quick motion, Morgan is seen aiming what he told law enforcement is a firearm, at deputies, leading to a fatal exchange of gunfire.
The sound of what appears to be 10 shots ring out. The second followed an approximate, distant, two seconds behind the initial shot.
CCSO deputies involved were uninjured.
Morgan was pronounced dead at the scene.
The New Mexico State Police Investigation Division was called in shortly after the incident and has since taken over the investigation.
The Investigation
According to Lieutenant Phil Vargas, public information officer at NMSP, the investigation is still ongoing, and state police are working to collect evidence, including interviews with the involved officers.
Lieutenant Vargas clarified that NMSP’s role in the investigation is strictly to gather facts and evidence, not to determine fault or guilt. 'Once the investigation is complete, the findings will be turned over to the District Attorney’s office for further review,' Vargas explained.
While officer-involved shootings typically result in a public press release, this particular shooting did not receive one. Lieutenant Vargas said this was unusual but acknowledged that more information will become available as the investigation progresses. He said other events that particular week prevented NMSP from getting out a press release.
The Cibola Citizen has attempted multiple times to contact the Cibola County Sheriff’s Office about updates to this case, including whether the officers involved are back on the streets. Despite these requests, which have included reaching out to both the sheriff and the undersheriff, the only response has been that the newspaper must contact the sheriff as he is the department’s public information officer. The newspaper reached out to Sheriff Larry Diaz multiple times on the two contacts available. After no return in communication, the Cibola Citizen contacted Undersheriff Jeff Marez to verify the sheriff’s cell phone number, with assistance the newspaper verified the contact being used is correct.
CCSO has not provided any additional comments on the shooting beyond their initial statement, which said: 'The Sheriff’s office is unable to answer questions as this is an ongoing investigation by New Mexico State Police.'
At this month’s Coffee with the Managers meeting on September 5, Cibola County Manager Kate Fletcher announced that both officers involved in this shooting have returned to duty. She asked for calm and kindness from the community as the event rattled the department.
Fletcher acknowledged that all records in this incident either are or will soon be publicly available, including the body camera footage of this incident. She thanked the Cibola County Board of Commissioners for the work they have done investing in CCSO to ensure they have high quality equipment, including body cameras, rifles, and government issued cell phones.
This was not the only officer involved shooting in Cibola County in recent weeks. Laguna Police Department fired shots and struck a woman.