Sixteen arrested in weekend operation

A New Mexico State Police saturation patrol resulted in 16 arrests, about 135 traffic citations and seizure of 1.5 grams of methamphetamine in Clovis over the weekend.

State Police Capt. David O’Leary said three arrests were for felonies and 11 were for outstanding warrants.

The operation, conducted about twice a year, was in response to recent reports of drive-by shootings, juveniles shooting up neighborhoods and an uptick in the theft of catalytic converters and Ford F150 auto thefts, O’Leary said.

There were also some specific criminal suspects on police radar, including a man who recently was in a shootout with Muleshoe Police Department. The police helicopter was hovering over Clovis Friday and Saturday nights in case anyone tried to flee from police.

“Actually, we did have someone run from us Friday night, and the helicopter helped us catch him,” O’Leary said. He said the individual was on a motorcycle and reached speeds of 100 mph.

O’Leary said the saturation patrol is also helpful to the local police, who are short about 18 officers.

“It’s probably hard for them to be proactive in the city and be more reactive to whatever calls come out. So yeah, it’s nice to get a proactive presence, you know, just maybe keep some of the criminals on their toes, knowing that we’re looking for them,” O’Leary said.

Raymond Gonzalez, 30, a lifelong resident of Clovis, was among those pulled over on Friday night.

“There were so many staters out there that night. … It literally looked like a video game,” he said.

“There’s times where I’ve seen multiple cops like out and about, but nothing like that Friday night. That was kind of crazy. They were everywhere.”

Gonzalez said he was on his way to a restaurant when he was stopped.

“I know they’re just doing their job, but man, the way they do it. They shine that light on your side mirror, and it blocks your vision pretty bad.”

The officer told him one of his front turn signals was out and he did not have a light for his license plate. Gonzalez said his vehicle doesn’t even have a socket for a license plate light. The officer did not cite him, but just alerted him to the issues, Gonzalez said.

O’Leary said the purpose of the operation was not to give out citations. He said about half of those pulled over were not cited.

“We’re trying to deter criminal activity. We’re trying to slow down the drive-by shootings. We’re trying to prevent the auto thefts that have been going on lately,” he said.

“Obviously, if we arrested this many warrants in 12 hours, you know, that’s something that we need to go out there and get these warrants served. I’ve never seen this many warrants in 12 hours. … It just tells you that these guys are out there running the street, and we need to get out there and get them apprehended,” he said.