State Police update crash that killed officer and retired firefighter on I-25
New Mexico State Police are updating the investigation into a pursuit and chase that killed an SFPD officer and a retired firefighter.
Updated: 6:59 PM MST Mar 5, 2022
All right, Good evening everybody. Uh thank you. Uh good evening. My name is Lieutenant Mark Soriano with the new Mexico State Police. I’d like to thank you all for joining us this evening as we provide uh new developments and the deadly santa fe incident that occurred last Wednesday behind me. You’ll see Deputy Chief Carolyn win with the new Mexico State police, interim chief of the santa fe Police department, paul Joy And 1st Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack All Tweets. The order of speaking will be Deputy Chief Win, interim chief paul Joy and the District Attorney Carmack All tweets. Please hold all your questions until the end. Uh And once everybody has had their speaking part, we will open it up to questions. All right, thank you. Pc. Good evening. First and foremost on behalf of the new Mexico State police. We want to express our deepest condolences to the families of officer robert Duran, families of retired firefighter frank Lovato and the santa fe Police Department. Thank you for joining us for an update on this case. After a thorough and meticulous investigation into Wednesday’s incident that left santa fe Police officer robert Duran and retired las Vegas firefighter Mr frank Lovato dead. The new Mexico state police has arrested Janine jaramillo. She is accused of fabricating the kidnapping and Carjacking story and leading officers on a deadly chase. On Wednesday March 2nd, about 11:30 a.m. State police was asked to assist with the pursuit involving santa fe P. D. And a suspect involved in a kidnapping and Carjacking that had just took place Around 11 a.m. in Santa Fe. The pursuit was initiated near Sawmill Road and ST Francis drive. It continued onto interstate 25 where the suspect drove in the wrong direction, traveling south in the northbound lanes near mile post 2 86 just north of old Pecos Trail. A crash occurred involving at least five vehicles to santa fe. Police patrol units, the white suspect vehicle and two uninvolved vehicles, a pickup truck and a blue car. Santa fe Police officer, robert Duran, 43 of Rio Rancho and the driver of the pickup truck. Retired Las Vegas firefighter. Mr frank Lovato, who was 62 were killed in the crash after the crash had a male, the female who claimed to be the kidnapping victim, exited the white suspect vehicle and was taken to a local hospital to be treated for non life threatening injuries and later released. In the initial aftermath, witnesses claim to have seen a male subject flee the area on foot. The new Mexico State police have now concluded through our detailed investigation that there was never a kidnapping or a male suspect involved. We believe Romeo led officers on a chase driving the suspect car and causing the fatal crash that killed Officer Duran and mr Lovato. We have evidence that backs up this conclusion, including a hot meal. Romeo has been arrested for two counts of murder in the first degree, receiving a transferring stolen vehicle. Aggravated fleeing of law enforcement officer and tampering with evidence. She is booked into the santa fe county adult detention center. We have learned that this is not the first time Romeo has been accused of this type of behavior. We did locate a criminal complaint out of grounds magistrate court On two September 2021 where she was charged with receiving transferring a stolen vehicle, aggravated fleeing and possession of methamphetamine. Her statement during the incident is suspiciously similar to her statement in this incident, including a male subject holding her against her will with a knife to her neck. The male subject was hiding on the floorboard and he ran away wearing a red shirt, black pants and a black hoodie. Many parts of this statement are very close to her statement in this incident. It never fails anytime. There’s a critical incident from the moment this incident happened, our officers stepped up and found the person who was responsible for this tragic incident. Ha tomatoes actions put her entire, put the entire public in danger and took the lives of two dedicated public servants. She caused a senseless tragedy that has impacted the community of santa fe las Vegas and all of new Mexico and the pain her actions have caused will not be alleviated by the rest by this arrest alone, there will be lasting consequences. But we do hope that holding her accountable will provide some solace to both victims, family and the community at large. Thank you Chief Joint, just want to take this opportunity to say thank you to um new Mexico state just for their work on this case but also for all the assistance they have given our department absorbing our calls for service along with the santa fe county sheriff’s office to allow our officers time to to grieve and process and be together as a family. I hope today brings us a step closer towards closure for us as a department as a family as a community. I want again offer my condolences to robert’s family and also Mr Lovato’s family and again just say thank you for me as a person and on behalf of my department to the community here in santa fe as well as across the state and across the nation for the outpouring of support and condolences and prayers and sympathy. It’s been amazing, it’s been overwhelming and it’s greatly appreciated thank you. Okay. Okay good evening I’m here to speak on behalf of the District Attorney’s office here in santa fe new Mexico. I would like to start off though by expressing our condolences to officer robert Duran his family and the blue family at the santa fe Police Department as well as the family of retired las Vegas firefighter frank Lovato. Our thoughts and prayers will remain with you all during this time. Now that jeannine harm you is in custody. My office plans to file a pretrial detention motion in district court on monday morning in hopes that the judge will keep Janine harm you in custody until the date of her trial. Through this horrific chain of events, we have seen the danger and damage that MS Harmony oh is capable of. If she is to remain out in the public, she will be charged with felony murder, which is first degree murder In this state. The felony predicate for that is the aggravated fleeing from a law enforcement officer. She will also be charged in the alternative with reckless homicide by vehicle, receiving and transferring a stolen vehicle and tampering with evidence. There is a possibility that we will add more charges as the rest of the investigation comes in after working with the new Mexico State police investigations team. From the District Attorney’s perspective, there is without question sufficient cause to assert that Harry miller was driving a stolen vehicle willfully and freely from any kind of dress when she fled from law enforcement and she caused the motor vehicle collision that killed officer Duran and Mr Lovato. I am confident in saying that harm you acted on her own accord and in a manner that is consistent with her recent criminal behavior of deceit and disregard for public safety as a direct result of new Mexico state police efforts, I undoubtedly agree that Janine harm you is culpable for and must answer to the charges of first degree murder. My office would like to thank in particular, the new Mexico state police for their steadfast work in this investigation. These initial findings could not have been so quickly determined if not for their diligent and fast work. As this case progresses, more information will become available. We’ll open it up to questions. My first question here, do we have any criminal record charges towards the man that had a meal was referring to as her boyfriend? Because this isn’t the first time Cibola County and grants she referred to the same person. So the male subject should refer to that that information we’ve exhausted all leads and determined that that individual was not involved just with how everything started. In regards to the 911 call. That’s the big question we had, We heard that it’s a 911 call that’s called in that kind of led to everything. Did we ever find out? Was it had a meal? That place. Was there ever a 911 about how this all started? Yes. So hearty meal did make contact with an individual at the apartment and that individual is the one that called 911. And was that individual saying, hey this person to them. We’re just trying how did that suspect. So the information that was given by that that that reporting person was that uh huh Romeo did approach this individual and tell them that she was being uh she was kidnapped and being held against her will. This individual did uh did see her but it did not appear that there was there was any type of threat towards her. So this person was just you know worried that is correct at this time. We do not have that information description man in the red shorts description description. It’s information she gave at this time. She she was considered a transient that she she would traffic through Albuquerque. She at times she did stay with her daughter at this time. I don’t have that information. Great. Yes That is correct. I would if I estimate it was about 2:00 PM. Where was where was she when she was taken into custody? She was located in Albuquerque. So place now at this time I do not have that information. She was to go ahead. She was taken into when she was taken into custody. She was questioned again. But I don’t have details of that interview. The vehicle she was found in is that it doesn’t have any ties to another store or was that registered under her name? The vehicle which vehicle the one she was located today? She was not located in the vehicle. She was on foot has already been released pull down. Was was that her vehicle explain? So the vehicle that she was in during the incident was stolen out of las Vegas. But we are still currently working that part of the investigation to determine who stole that. You know why I had a meal was at the apartment. We do not have that information now and then when the investigators stop pursuing with the press releases, we were hearing, we don’t believe there’s a threat to the public but we’re still searching for that suspect. How to tailgate. When did authorities realize? Hey, there was no other side. This was all adopted by based on the information we had and the evidence that we submitted to the lab. It was determined that she was the sole driver of that vehicle. But when did this all happen? Because this crash happened Wednesday A couple of days later she’s finally arrived. Why did it take so long for investigators determined she was lying about everything finding out her criminal. This is again, this evidence was submitted to the lab yesterday and we got the results late last night which helped us determine that she was the driver of the vehicle. Was there anything the search warrant there was uh that information I don’t have available. So it was the evidence like you said committed that led to this arrest. It wasn’t looking finding out. She was basically telling the same exact lie before it was this evidence to arrest. Not necessarily. Well her criminal past and then the information that was recovered inside the vehicle that it didn’t appear that there was no other occupants in the vehicle. There was only one occupant of that vehicle at this time. I do not have that information. I just had a couple questions about the charges. Um If we could just explain that a little bit more because it was a vehicle involved and the reason for the current charges, why isn’t there like a manslaughter because the vehicle was involved or anything like that? Just more clarification on the charges if that’s okay if I can let the district attorney answer that. Um So right now what she is facing is the felony murder charge or in the alternative Regulus reckless homicide by vehicle and that would be akin to a manslaughter charge. Manslaughter is actually a lesser included of the first degree murder, reckless vehicle, reckless reckless homicide by vehicle is is because of the vehicle. So we’re going to go out at this case from two different tracks and two different um theories of the case. Do you have any information in the initial this total vehicle who was registered on their registered owners? Out of las Vegas new Mexico? Any other questions? When did investigators suspicious? Right that there was no other search for CBS one there first on scene said that he never saw another suspect get out of the vehicle. So when did the suspicions to play like again it’s just all the evidence that was collected to include a history where she filed the previous criminal complaint. Um that were very the statement that she gave then was suspiciously similar to this case. Also to include that the DNA that was collected on the airbag was belonged to her to a female. Um and then the evidence that was inside the vehicle that led that led us to confirm that there was only one occupant in the vehicle at the time of the crash belong to her. That is correct. Was there a knife at all I’d seen, was there a firearm at all embassies or anything like that? I can’t confirm exactly what was collected in there. Can you just tell us kind of the steps you know to describe the charges and what monday? But just moving forward in this investigation, what what that what was again we continue this investigation to make sure that we exhaust all leads as far as to up to the vehicle when the vehicle was stolen the purpose of the stolen vehicle. We still have to follow up with the individuals that were either the witnesses or the reporting party if there’s any additional questions. So again this this investigation is ongoing and we we are still not done. We have a lot of work to do which we will continue to do. I assure you that That’s correct. It carries a sentence of 30 years, 30 years to life. Anything else? Just the last question and maybe this is kind of too far down the line to kind of talk about but just the mental competency with her you know given the same exact kind of story before. But boy pointed this kind of car chases. Is that a worry, the Hobbit? I’m sure that’s something that defense attorneys will, will look into. However, it’s not a concern for us at this point. I think her actions after the fact speak to a competency and we are not concerned about that. And I apologize. Last question was she taken into custody without incident? Was cooperative and being taken into custody? Yes, she was anything else? Well, thank you folks for all coming. I appreciate it. Thank you. Mm hmm.
State Police update crash that killed officer and retired firefighter on I-25
New Mexico State Police are updating the investigation into a pursuit and chase that killed an SFPD officer and a retired firefighter.
Updated: 6:59 PM MST Mar 5, 2022
New Mexico State Police are updating the investigation on a pursuit that resulted in a crash that killed a Santa Fe Police Department officer and a retired Las Vegas firefighter on I-25 on Wednesday. On Friday, KOAT obtained a search warrant filed in Santa Fe Magistrate Court that gives more insight into the investigation. According to that search warrant, a Santa Fe Police officer told New Mexico State Police that he only saw one person in the car traveling the wrong way, during that police chase. That person – Jeannine Jaramillo – exited the car from the driver’s side. The vehicle in the crash was also reported stolen on Monday.Another search warrant is for a phone that was found in the car – which belongs to Jaramillo. Search warrant were filed for the vehicle, clothing belonging to Jaramillo, DNA and photos of Jaramillo.
New Mexico State Police are updating the investigation on a pursuit that resulted in a crash that killed a Santa Fe Police Department officer and a retired Las Vegas firefighter on I-25 on Wednesday.
On Friday, KOAT obtained a search warrant filed in Santa Fe Magistrate Court that gives more insight into the investigation. According to that search warrant, a Santa Fe Police officer told New Mexico State Police that he only saw one person in the car traveling the wrong way, during that police chase. That person – Jeannine Jaramillo – exited the car from the driver’s side. The vehicle in the crash was also reported stolen on Monday.
Another search warrant is for a phone that was found in the car – which belongs to Jaramillo. Search warrant were filed for the vehicle, clothing belonging to Jaramillo, DNA and photos of Jaramillo.