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BERNALILLO COUNTY, N.M. – The gunman believed to be responsible in the homicides of a patrolman with the New Mexico State Police as well as a paramedic in South Carolina was taken into custody on Sunday after an alert gas station clerk spotted the suspect and called 911, authorities said.
Jaremy Smith, 33, is accused of gunning down Patrolman Justin Hare early Friday as well the slaying of Phonesia Machado-Fore, a South Carolina paramedic who was reported missing on Thursday, according to officials, ABC News reported.
Smith was taken into custody in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, after leading police on a foot chase that resulted in him being shot and wounded by at least one deputy from the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, according to the New Mexico State Police.
The Officer Down Memorial Page offered the following details:
Patrolman Justin Hare was shot and killed at about 5:30 am while conducting a welfare check on a disabled vehicle that was stopped near mile marker 320 on I-40, west of Tucumcari.
As Patrolman Hare stopped behind the vehicle, the driver exited and walked to the cruiser’s passenger window. The two had a short discussion, and as Patrolman Hare offered to drive the man into town, the subject suddenly produced a handgun and shot him. He shot him a second time before pushing him into the passenger seat. He then abducted him and stole the patrol car, abandoning it approximately 16 miles away and fleeing on foot.
Patrolman Hare was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his wounds two hours later.
New Mexico State Patrolman Justin Hare. (New Mexico State Police)
Unbeknownst to Patrolman Hare, the man was the suspect in the murder of an off-duty paramedic in South Carolina several days earlier. The car he was driving belonged to the murder victim. The subject was arrested two days later after exchanging gunfire with a Bernalillo County sheriff’s deputy.
He is survived by his girlfriend, two children, mother, father, and brother.
When authorities located Hare’s patrol car, it was crashed and empty. Hare was later discovered critically injured along the side of the road. He was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead, New Mexico State Police Chief Troy Weisler said.
Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen said a clerk at a Murphy Express gas station in Albuquerque recognized a customer matching Smith’s description around 7 a.m. local time Sunday and called authorities.
The clerk later told ABC News that she called 911 after carding Smith when he bought a pack of cigarettes and used his real ID. She immediately recognized the accused killer from wanted posters that were distributed by law enforcement.
“I was nervous. I was scared. I didn’t know if he was armed. Actually, when I carded him, I was like, ‘Is he going to shoot me,’” the clerk said. “But I wanted to do what was right for the family [of Officer Hare], for my community and to back the blue.”
When deputies arrived at the scene, they quickly located Smith walking on a road in a residential neighborhood nearby and immediately began to establish a perimeter, Allen noted.
“A foot pursuit ensued, shots were fired. Some shots struck Smith. We don’t know the amount right now or how many. That’s still under investigation,” he said.
New Mexico State Police released this photo of a suspect sought in the fatal shooting of Patrolman Hare. (New Mexico State Police)
Allen said Smith was taken to a local hospital, where he was under guard and being treated. No deputies were injured during the apprehension.
“When a law enforcement officer is killed anywhere in the state of New Mexico, we stand as a unified front,” the sheriff said, praising the work of federal, state and local law enforcement “who worked as a team to make sure we took someone that was very dangerous to the public, all of our communities, into custody.”
According to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Machado-Fore was found dead outside of Lake View in Dillon County, South Carolina, on Friday. She had been reported missing by her family. An autopsy is scheduled to take place on Monday.
Weisler commented that Smith has an “extensive” criminal history dating back decades in South Carolina. He also has ties to the Albuquerque area.
The investigation remains ongoing as there is a lengthy trail to recreate between the homicide scene in South Carolina and another in New Mexico.
“We will be tirelessly searching for any leads and any individuals that we discover were involved with that,” Weisler said.
Hare’s girlfriend, Daizzare, is the mother of his two daughters and is also pregnant with their third child. On Sunday, she released a statement describing Hare as “an amazing son, father, spouse and Police Officer.”
“The role he played in the lives of his family and those close to him will never be forgotten,” she wrote. “The fact that he put his heart into every single thing that he did was the epitome of who Justin was. It’s so hard to put his life and who he was into paragraphs because he was indescribable.”
She added, “Justin loved me and our family. He always went above and beyond to ensure we had everything we needed. Not just financially or materialistic, but he was constantly present. He always let the girls and I know that we were his priority.”
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Source: www.lawofficer.com