Jan. 9—The Albuquerque Police Department said one of its officers lost part of an index finger after being shot in both hands by an auto theft suspect late last month off East Central.

Had officer Zachary Garris not been holding out his gun, the bullet likely would have struck his head or chest, Police Chief Harold Medina said.

Officers Howard Perry and Isaiah Relaford fired back at the shooter, 29-year-old Santiago Perez, as he fled, hitting him in the arm and leg. Garris has been released from the hospital, and Perez is recovering in the hospital.

Court records show Perez was sentenced to five years in prison in 2015 on armed robbery charges. In 2021, he was sentenced to more than a year in prison for leading deputies on a chase.

At the time of the shooting, a warrant had been issued for Perez’s arrest after he violated parole by failing drug tests for cannabis and missing appointments.

Cmdr. Kyle Hartsock, with APD’s Criminal Investigations Bureau, said a trace on the gun used by Perez showed it had last been purchased in 2003 by the Rhode Island State Police.

He said police still were trying to figure out how the gun got into Perez’s hands 20 years later.

Medina said it is unclear what long-term damage the bullet did to Garris’ hands. All three officers have been with the department since 2020, and none had been in a prior shooting.

Usually, APD releases details on police shootings in chronological order, but Medina said they were “jumping to the front of the line” due to the fact that an officer was injured.

APD officials said they will give an update on three prior police shootings within the week.

The department had 14 police shootings in 2023, a decrease from the record-high 18 shootings from 2022. Six of 2023 shootings were fatal.

The Dec. 30 shooting that injured Garris happened outside Adam Food Market, known for open-air drug use and a gathering place for those living on the streets. The city filed an unsuccessful lawsuit against the convenience store last year, labeling it a nuisance property that is a magnet for crime.

About 8:15 p.m., a license plate reader captured a stolen car driving east on Central, past Louisiana.

Hartsock said several officers in the area started looking for the car, which had been reported stolen in Rio Rancho. He said Garris and Relaford spotted the car parked outside the market and alerted other officers.

“A plan was made to conduct a high-risk stop on the vehicle while it was stationary inside the parking lot,” Hartsock said.

In the surveillance footage from Adam Food Market, Perez can be seen parked out front when Garris’ pulled into the lot behind him, his lights and sirens on. Perez tried to reverse and bumped into Garris’ vehicle as two other police vehicles pulled into the lot.

Video showed officers yelled commands, ordering Perez to get out of the car. Perez opened the driver’s side door, pointed a gun toward Garris and fired once, then again several seconds later. The first bullet hit Garris in the hands as he held his gun; the second bullet dug into the headlight of his police vehicle.

Lapel video showed officer Relaford fired once at Perez — missing him — after he ran from the stolen vehicle toward the front of the store. As Perez was running across the front of Adam Food Market, toward a group of bystanders hiding behind a car, officer Perry fired two bullets from almost 50 feet away, striking him in the arm and leg.

Hartsock, during the briefing, said Perry was unaware that Garris had been shot but saw an armed Perez running and “fired two shots out of concern for the safety of the people in the parking lot.”

Perez fell to the ground and the gun slid across the ground. Officers ran up to detain Perez, who was groaning in pain. In the background, two small fires could be seen flickering on the ground, the people who started them to stay warm having fled into the night.

Hartsock said police found more than an ounce of methamphetamine and a bag of 214 fentanyl pills on Perez. He said the gun Perez used had not been reported stolen.

“We were able to confirm it was purchased in 2003 by the Rhode Island State Police. They did indicate to us they had since sold or transferred the weapon to an arms dealer after that,” Hartsock said.

He said APD is still working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives “to get a better idea of how the gun ended up out here in New Mexico and in the hands of a convicted felon.”

Medina said the bullet went through the index finger on Garris left hand before lodging in the wrist of his right hand. He said the bullet was removed during emergency surgery.

“Obviously we’re waiting to see what the condition and what the functionality of his hand will be after this,” Medina said.