Farmington Man Charged with Five Felonies After Armed Home Invasion, Puppy Stolen
Armed home invasion in Sunset Heights led to arrest of a Farmington man; a stolen puppy and other property were recovered, raising safety concerns near Farmington High School.
Armed intruders entered a home on the 1100 block of Smith Lane in Farmington and left occupants injured as they stole a puppy, electronics and bicycles, authorities say. A 29-year-old Farmington man is now facing multiple felony charges in the case, and two suspects remain at large.
State police charged Salvador Michael Sanchez with a second-degree felony count of aggravated burglary with a deadly weapon, three second-degree felony counts of armed robbery and a third-degree felony count of possession of a firearm by a felon. The charges stem from an incident that prompted a shelter-in-place alert for the Sunset Heights neighborhood near Farmington High School.
A resident reported the home invasion at 2:11 p.m. Jan. 17, and surveillance video helped investigators identify Sanchez, along with 23-year-old Alex Arnold of Farmington and 26-year-old MyKaela Gonzales of Farmington. According to the affidavit for an arrest warrant, the suspects “forcibly entered the residence while armed with pistols and robbed the occupants of multiple items, including a pit bull puppy, a television, a laptop computer, bicycles, and other miscellaneous property.”
Farmington police spokeswoman Shanice Gonzales said the assailants attacked both residents during the robbery. “The suspects repeatedly struck both (the man) and his girlfriend with handguns, causing the man to suffer multiple cuts to his head,” she said. The male victim received medical treatment at San Juan Regional Medical Center.
As dusk fell, police blocked the area between Lynwood Drive and 20th Street and issued a citywide shelter-in-place notification beginning about 6 p.m. SWAT teams executed search actions at homes in the 200 block of Sunset Place; officers cleared the scene around 10:20 p.m. after taking Sanchez into custody. Shanice Gonzales confirmed “the puppy was recovered and is safe.”
Investigators located a dark gray Ford F-150 linked to the incident at a residence in the 200 block of Sunset Place. The affidavit reports that Mariah Arnold, the sister of one suspect, told officers her brother and Gonzales had been at her home and “left driving a silver, early-2000s Jeep.” Farmington SWAT also searched Sanchez’s residence on Sunset Place after he reportedly “did not want to give a statement.” A search warrant produced a 12-gauge shotgun, a 9 mm pistol, multiple types of ammunition and a wallet the affidavit says belongs to one of the victims.
The San Juan County District Attorney’s Office filed a motion seeking a pretrial detention hold for Sanchez, arguing there is “convincing evidence that no release conditions will reasonably protect the safety of any other person or the community.” The motion noted prior arrests for aggravated battery and residential burglary and a conviction for residential burglary. The case was transferred to 11th Judicial District Judge Curtis Gurley for further proceedings.
For Sunset Heights residents, the incident underscores how quickly violent crime can affect neighborhoods near schools and busy corridors. Police say the investigation is ongoing and two additional suspects have not yet been located. Expect continued law enforcement activity in the area as detectives pursue the remaining suspects and the county’s court process determines whether detainees will remain held pending trial.
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