Grand Canyon Times

A White Mountain Apache Police officer was killed in a shooting during a traffic stop on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation in Whiteriver, Arizona, in early June.

A shootout that occurred later left the suspect dead and another officer wounded, according to ABC News.

Officer Adrian Lopez, Sr., 35, was shot and killed after he stopped a car driven by Kevin Dwight Nashio, 25, near downtown Whiteriver. Nashio then took off in Lopez’s police vehicle.

“There’s no possible way to try to outline the chaotic event that this was,” Chief Deputy Brian Swanty said. 

Several officers chased Nashio for at least 40 miles, during which a rolling gun battle took place, ABC News reported.

Nashio crashed the car into a tree and then engaged police in another gun battle. Sgt. Lonnie Thompson, 29, was wounded and Nashio was killed. Thompson’s injuries were described as debilitating but not life-threatening. 

“Last night, the unimaginable happened,” Kasey Velasquez, White Mountain Apache Tribe chairman, said. “Our hearts are once again broken by the loss of one of our best and bravest White Mountain Apache police officers.”

Velasquez also spoke with AzCentral.

“Our tribe has lost a beacon of light, a bulwark against the darkness, but we have not lost hope nor faith in the future of our White Mountain Apache Tribe and in the rule of law,” he said.

Gov. Doug Ducey (R-Ariz.) added his condolences as well.

“This is a heartbreaking loss,” Ducey said in a news release from the governor’s office. “Officer Adrian Lopez served with the White Mountain Apache Police Department for just five months when he lost his life in the line of duty. There is no greater act of selflessness than for one to lay down his life for another.” 

Lopez joined the White Mountain police in January after working for the Bureau of Indian Affairs since March 2021, AzCentral reported.

“Officer Lopez will be remembered as a selfless and brave protector,” Ducey said. “This is a sobering reminder of the danger our law enforcement officers face every day to keep others safe. Acts of violence and lawlessness against our law enforcement is unacceptable. In this time of mourning, our prayers are with Officer Lopez’s wife, child, and loved ones as well as the White Mountain Apache Tribe.”

Swanty said Nashio was known to the police but did not say why and did not elaborate on why Lopez stopped him, ABC News reported.