US Attorney's Office obtains conviction of Church Rock man for shooting police officers

FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE – A Church Rock man has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges related to an attack on Navajo law enforcement officers.

According to court documents, in the early morning of July 22, 2023, the Navajo Police Department (NPD) received reports of a man named Elijah Touchine, 24, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, walking near his residence, firing a gun and threatening to hurt someone.

Officers from the NPD and New Mexico State Police arrived at the area and came under fire from an unknown direction, prompting them to take tactical action for their own protection. Officers could hear bullets whizzing by and hitting the ground nearby. They pursued the shooter into a ravine, but had to call off the search after 12 hours due to darkness.

Later that same day, the FBI, with assistance from the Gallup Police Department, located Touchine at a local gun store in Gallup. He was taken into custody without incident.

During the course of the investigation, it was determined that Touchine had forced his grandmother to buy ammunition and an AR-15 weapon for him through threats of violence. When asked why he bought a gun, Touchine replied, “I don't know, shoot every cop I see.”

Police found a .40 caliber Taurus pistol and ammunition in a black bag in the trunk of his grandmother's vehicle.

At sentencing, Touchine faces 12 to 17 years in prison. After his release from prison, Touchine will be eligible for up to five years of probation.

The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Alexander MM Uballez and Raul Bujanda, special agent in charge of the FBI's Albuquerque field office.

The Gallup Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Police Department and the Department of Criminal Investigation, the New Mexico State Police, and the Gallup Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Marshall is prosecuting this case.