Darrell Desiderio of Twin lakes was released on his own recognizance Jan. 11 after being arrested on a variety of warrant charges, including theft of a motor vehicle, possession of a motor vehicle, leaving the scene of an accident, reckless driving and resisting arrest.

Desiderio, 39, was arrested Dec. 27 after a three-month search, according to jail records. He was housed at the McKinley-County Adult Detention Center on a $12,000 cash bond.

Gabrielle Puhuyesva, an investigator with the McKinley County Sheriff’s Office, had been looking for Desiderio in connection to a stolen car incident dating back to September 2015.

At one juncture, the vehicle was seen near the Fire Rock Navajo Casino near Church Rock.

A sheriff’s deputy reported seeing the vehicle in the area and tried to make a traffic stop, according to an arrest warrant. The driver did not stop and MCSO deputies, along with officers from the New Mexico State Police, employed spike strips, which the driver of the vehicle managed to avoid.

The pursuit ended along Highway 122 in Thoreau where the driver ran from the pursuit of officers. An arrest was avoided pending laboratory results on DNA testing from the car’s steering wheel and from two cigarette butts found on the floor board of the vehicle.

Desiderio was also the primary suspect in a downtown Gallup stabbing in August 2016. That incident sent a local man to an area hospital with four stab wounds, police said at the time.

There was not an attorney listed in jail records for Desiderio. According to court records, Desiderio has been arrested in New Mexico 18 times dating back to 1999 on charges ranging from aggravated battery on a household member and various drug charges.

By Bernie Dotson

Sun Correspondent