The domestic violence suspect killed in an officer-involved shooting in Albuquerque earlier this month told officers he needed to use the bathroom before escaping a police vehicle, according to body-worn footage.
The footage posted to the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office (BCSO)'s Facebook page last week shows the 41-year-old slain suspect Mario Armando Diaz, among other things, assaulting and pinning down a deputy in the moments leading up to his killing. At about 5:15 in the footage, Diaz, who already had slipped out of one handcuff, can be heard running away.
Bodycam footage of Mario Armando Diaz before he escapes custody, assaults a deputy and was shot dead
| facebook.com/BCSONM/
"You won't let me take a (expletive) yo," the Albuquerque man is heard to say. A deputy replies, "No."
The scuffle between Diaz and police is heard and ongoing after that.
The video posted to BCSO's Facebook page Dec. 20 has Bernalillo County Sheriff Manuel Gonzales III narrating during the first few minutes of the footage and included a warning that "some viewers may find this video disturbing, and it is not suitable for children."
Dispatch received a domestic violence call at 8:15 p.m. from a woman who told dispatchers she was hiding from her boyfriend, Diaz. Deputies were dispatched to Las Mananitas Apartments at 6200 Montano Plaza NW about 45 minutes later to speak with her.
"During the investigation, deputies determined a battery had occurred," Gonzales said in his narration of the footage. "While speaking with the victim, the offender of the battery arrived on the scene."
The footage shows Diaz briefly attempt to flee before he was apprehended, handcuffed, escorted to a deputy's vehicle and placed inside. His comment about having to urinate followed his escape from the deputy's vehicle and the resulting scuffle.
"As deputies pursued him, the offender was physically combative and refused to comply with commands," Gonzales said during his narration. "During a physical fight, the offender was holding a female deputy down refusing to let go. When the deputy indicates the suspect has her gun, the additional deputy fired two rounds, killing the suspect."
Diaz's prior mugshot also is shown during the footage, along with his priors between 2003 and his death. Those priors included possession of a dangerous drug without prescription, aggravated battery with great bodily harm of a household member, possession of a controlled substance, unlawful taking of a motor vehicle and DWI/DUI.
The holiday season has been difficult for Albuquerque. KOAT reported on Christmas Eve that domestic violence has been on the rise in Albuquerque over the present holiday season and that local police were investigating the city's 112th homicide.