It began with a vehicle pursuit that involved both the Gallup Police and the McKinley County Sheriff’s Office.

Gallup Police said they were pursuing a car that was headed for U.S. Highway 491. The car has been reported to have been stolen.

Sheriff Deputy Lorenzo Guerrero was on Highway 491 at the time and reported that the vehicle passed him at the three-mile marker. Police deployed stop sticks on the highway just ahead and when the vehicle went over them, some of tires were flattened.

The vehicle kept going, however, and proceeded north until it turned west on the Francisco Pond Road with Guerrero in pursuit. He said it went the whole distance on the road until it spun out and...

The McKinley County Sheriff’s Office investigated a car crash near David Skeets Elementary School in which one of the occupants died July 13.

The name of the victim was not in the report since the accident took place on reservation land and the case was turned over to the Navajo Police Department to investigate.

The sheriff’s office did write up a backup report which said deputies responded to the call that came in about 9 pm. When deputies arrived at the scene at Jones Ranch Road, 6 miles west of State Highway 602, they found a white pickup had crashed into a tree. There was no one in the driver’s seat and deputies found footprints leading away from the vehicle.

One of the...

Gallup Police Officer John Gonzales was on patrol on July 6 when he was dispatched to the 300 block of Bortot Drive where a man was trying to cut off his ankle monitoring device that he’s court ordered to wear.

When he got there, he identified the man as Bryan Burrola, 41, of Gallup.

Gonzales was also told that Burrola had an outstanding bench warrant.

Police said on Thursday that Burrola had been convicted of misuse of a credit card back in May and had been put on probation. He is also facing arson charges in magistrate court.

On July 6, he was placed under arrest for the warrant as well as for a probation violation. But before he was transported to the county jail, he had to be...

Ridley Bitsilly

July 14, 1:07 pm

DWI

Gallup Police Officer Jeremy Shirley was on routine patrol about 2 pm, traveling eastbound on Montoya Boulevard going about 40 miles per hour, when a car passed him going at a high rate of speed.

He did a routine traffic stop of the vehicle after it stopped near the Montoya Park, and two women got out and headed into the park. Shirley said he spoke to the driver, Ridley Bitsilly, 60, Gallup and explained why he had been stopped.

“I know,” he said, “they had to use the bathroom.” He pointed toward his wife and granddaughter who were on the way to use the restroom at the park.

Shirley could smell the odor of liquor coming from...