Man shot in New Mexico after dispute over colonial statue

A man was shot in Old Town after a protest over the "La Jornada" sculpture in front of the Albuquerque Museum erupted into mayhem Monday evening.

The shooting occurred after a violent protest broke out about the removal of a sculpture that featured the conquistador Juan de Oñate.

Oñate served as a colonial governor of the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo Mexico from 1598 to 1606. He is best known for his involvement in the Acoma Massacre, where he ordered a brutal response against the Acoma Pueblo after a dispute resulted in the death of 13 on Oñate's men. He not only destroyed the pueblo, but killed somewhere between 800-1000 of their people.

The FBI has gotten involved, according to the Albuquerque Journal. And the US Senator Martin Heinrich has called on the US Department of Justice to launch an investigation into the shooting.

The night was off to a peaceful start before tensions started to rise as protesters took a pickaxe to the statue while members of the New Mexico Civil Guard, a civilian group, made attempts to protect the monument.

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham condemned the violence and those who instigated it before the night was through.

“Although we are still learning more about the situation, I am horrified and disgusted beyond words by the reports of violence at a protest Monday night in Albuquerque,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement.

“The heavily armed individuals who flaunted themselves at the protest, calling themselves a ‘civil guard,’ were there for one reason: To menace protesters, to present an unsanctioned show of unregulated force. To menace the people of New Mexico with weaponry — with an implicit threat of violence — is on its face unacceptable; that violence did indeed occur is unspeakable.”

Mayor Tim Keller said that the city would be "removing the statue until the appropriate civic institutions can determine next steps" in order to establish and maintain public safety.

“The shooting tonight was a tragic, outrageous and unacceptable act of violence and it has no place in our city,” the mayor wrote in a statement. “Our diverse community will not be deterred by acts meant to divide or silence us. Our hearts go out to the victim, his family and witnesses whose lives were needlessly threatened tonight.”

Police Chief Michael Geier said that the APD is "receiving reports about vigilante groups possibly instigating this violence."

“If this is true, (we) will be holding them accountable to the fullest extent of the law, including federal hate group designation and prosecution,” he noted.

The shooting occurred between a man in a blue shirt and a group of protesters who intended to pull down the statue. The man was pushed onto the street, and protesters advanced on him, with some threatening him. The man pulled out a can of pepper spray and used it.

Then the man in the blue shirt pulled out what appeared to be a gun and fired it five times, wounding one of the people advancing on him.

People ran away screaming afterward.

“Somebody got shot,” people yelled.

The victim went down in the middle of the intersection of 20th Street and Mountain. An EMT, acting as a protest medic, said he was one of the first to approach the wounded man, and said the victim had been shot one time.

The evening started out with a prayer and peaceful protest to remove the statue as the civilian militia stood by, watching.

There was estimated to be about 300 people there. Shortly after, protesters climbed on the statue with one using a pickaxe, which is when the civilian militia intervened and attempted to take the pickaxe away.

About 10 minutes later, the altercation escalated, which resulted with the man in the blue shirt falling down and getting chased off. Gunfire erupted shortly after.

Gallegos confirmed that the APD's Emergency Response Team was deployed after the shooting.

“Police used chemical irritants and flash bangs to protect officers and detain individuals involved in the shooting,” Gallegos said in an email. “The individuals were disarmed and taken into custody for questioning.”

Officers carried away five or six armed men in military fatigues into custody.

Tear gas and flash bangs were used after the shooting as dozens of protesters mingled around the area.

Around 9:30 p.m., the crowd started to disperse, with several promising to come back to tear down the statue.