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Potential deadly situation curtailed by cops

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Man gets tasered instead

Police ended up tasing a man from Window Rock after he kept acting like he was going to start fighting them.

On March 9, around 9:16 pm, Gallup Police Officer Matthew Strandy arrived at the Villa De Gallup II, 333 Klagetoh St., because a man had called in saying his grandmother had texted him telling him to call the police.

The man explained that his uncle was highly intoxicated, and that his grandmother was afraid to come out of her room.

When Strandy got to the apartment, the uncle, Keroy Bia, 38, from Window Rock, Ariz., opened the door. According to his report, Strandy could tell Bia was extremely intoxicated, and he became aggressive towards the officer.

Bia began swearing at Strandy and told him to turn his flashlight off. Strandy kept his flashlight on because the lighting in the apartment was dark and there was no porch light.

Strandy repeatedly asked Bia to calm down, but the man kept clenching his hands into fists, and he lowered his chin and began shifting his weight back and forth. According to his report, Strandy saw this as a fighting stance and began to worry Bia would try to fight him.

Bia stepped out of the apartment, still clenching his fists and shifting his weight. Strandy took out his taser and prepared to use it by taking the safety off, while still telling Bia he needed to calm down. The officer told the man he was only there to talk.

Bia began walking towards a car that was parked in the apartment complex’s parking lot. He continued to swear at Strandy.

Eventually, Strandy’s view of Bia was obstructed by the car, and while he was on the opposite side of the car Strandy could not see Bia’s hands. He could not tell if the man had any weapons.

Bia finally walked around the car so that Strandy could once again see him, and that’s when Officer Aaron Marquez arrived at the scene.

The officers continued to try and talk to Bia, but he was still in the fighting stance.  At this point, Strandy had his taser pointed at Bia, with the laser pointed at his stomach.

Marquez began to approach Bia to try and detain him, and Bia put his fists up acting like he was preparing to fight. According to his report, Strandy still could not tell if Bia had a weapon or not, and he feared for his fellow officer’s safety, so he tased Bia.

Bia fell to the ground, hitting his face on the pavement. While he was on the ground, the officers were able to handcuff him. Strandy noted that the man did not have any weapons.

Bia was bleeding from the bridge of his nose, and he had also vomited on himself when he was tased.

A medical team arrived at the scene and checked Bia over. They said he would possibly need stitches for his nose.

After receiving medical treatment for his injuries at local hospital, Bia was transported to the McKinley County Adult Detention Center and booked on two charges: resisting an officer, and threatening an officer. His pre-trial hearing will be on April 7.

By Molly Ann Howell
Sun Correspondent