Albuquerque man accused of spitting on police horse, trying to flee

A downtown Albuquerque patrol by the APD Horse Mounted Unit ended with the arrest of 20-year-old Santiago Brandon Cazares after police say he spit at a horse and tried to run. He is now charged with injury to a police dog, police horse or fire dog, resisting, evading or obstructing an officer, and disorderly conduct.

According to the criminal complaint filed June 13, officers were patrolling Central Avenue between 3rd Street and 7th Street when one mounted officer saw Cazares walk near the horse’s face and allegedly spit at it. Police say Cazares admitted to spitting at the horse when confronted. When officers tried to detain him, investigators say he pulled away and attempted to flee before he was taken into custody.

The case highlights why Albuquerque uses horses in crowded public spaces. APD says its mounted unit, in place since 1977, is used for crowd control, proactive patrols, crime prevention, community events and city-sponsored events. The department has said horseback officers can give police a better vantage point in dense downtown crowds, where officers on foot can have a harder time seeing over people packed along Central Avenue.

New Mexico law treats injury or harassment of a police horse as a crime. Under state statute, causing minor physical injury or pain is a petty misdemeanor, while serious physical injury or death can bring a fourth-degree felony charge. The law also allows restitution for veterinary bills or replacement costs if the animal is permanently disabled, killed or destroyed.

APD has pointed to the mounted unit as a visible public-order tool downtown. In a July 2025 report, the department said the Horse Mounted Unit had recorded 48 arrests so far that year and was being credited with helping crime trends in the city center. The department has also used mounted officers in arrests and chases downtown, including a 2025 incident in which horseback officers chased down a suspect.