A call came into Metro Dispatch on Aug. 23 stating someone had pulled a gun on them near Rocket Liquors, 1717 S. Second St. They said two males made threats and one of them appeared highly intoxicated.
A Public Service Officer responded to the calls and advised Gallup Police that both men were in the vicinity.
When he arrived, Officer Daniel Brown, he found one of the suspects, Marc Yazzie, 36, of Gallup, outside BPL Plasma, at 1706 S. Second St. He told Yazzie to get down on the ground and Yazzie complied. Another officer at the scene searched Yazzie and found a 9 mm handgun, but no ammo belts. Brown ran the handgun’s serial number through Metro Dispatch and was told it was registered as stolen from Albuquerque.
Another officer found the other male, Alexander Johnson, 34, of Vanderwagen, outside the Speedway store at 1730 S. Second St. Brown arrived to assist and saw Johnson was disorderly and did appear intoxicated, as the caller described. Johnson did not respond to the officers’ questions and stated his arm was hurting from a previous injury.
Brown spoke with witnesses at the scene, who said Yazzie and Johnson had approached them earlier and appeared to threaten them, saying they were going to “take out the whole south block.”
Based on the investigation, Brown determined Yazzie and Johnson had committed aggravated assault. While Yazzie was transported to McKinley County Adult Detention Center, Johnson was transported to Gallup Indian Medical Center for clearance.
On the way, Johnson started to act disorderly and told Brown he was going to have a seizure. Based on his actions, Brown did not believe Johnson was at risk of a seizure. He thought Johnson could have been under the influence of narcotics.
After he was refused entry at the jail, Johnson was taken to Gallup Indian Medical Center for a psychiatric evaluation. A summons would later be filed from the Magistrate Court.
Yazzie was released on his own recognizance by Judge Robert Ionta.
