City of Santa Fe Mourns the Loss of Officer Duran
Thankful to Public Safety Partners for their Support
Santa Fe, NM, March 3, 2022 – Santa Fe Police Senior Officer Robert Duran died in a motor vehicle crash on Interstate 25 yesterday during a pursuit of a motor vehicle that was reported as a kidnapping in progress. An uninvolved civilian, identified by State Police as retired Las Vegas, NM firefighter Frank Lovato, age 62, was also killed during the terrible incident.
Officer Duran was well respected and loved by his peers, and the Santa Fe Police Department and City of Santa Fe are grieving his loss. Our condolences are with the family of Robert Duran, and the family of the other driver lost in this tragic crash. We ask everyone to please respect Officer Duran’s family’s privacy at this time and allow them time to grieve.
Officer Duran joined the Santa Fe Police Department in January 2015 as a police cadet. He was assigned to the Patrol Section and served as a member of the department’s Emergency Response Team. Officer Duran was 43 years of age. He was married, and has two teenage sons.
“We are devastated. There are no words to accurately describe the loss our department is feeling, to lose one of our own is heartbreaking,” said Interim Chief Paul Joye.
“Our community and members of our Department lost a great officer and an amazing man. My heart is broken for Robert’s family and his colleagues as they process their loss,” said Deputy Chief of Administration Ben Valdez.
“Tragically, we have lost one of Santa Fe’s finest, a devoted police officer who gave his life in the line of duty and in service to this community. Our hearts continue to be heavy by this tragic loss. We are thinking of his family and our Police Department. We also remember the innocent civilian, retired firefighter Frank Lovato whose life was lost in this tragedy,” said Mayor Webber.
Officer Duran is the third Santa Fe Police Officer lost in the line of duty. The last on-duty officer loss was in the 1930’s.
The family of Officer Duran has sent up a GoFundMe account for anyone interested in assisting. Click here for link.
The City wishes to thank to the Santa Fe Community for their outpouring of support to the family of Officer Duran and the Santa Fe Police Department. We express our deepest appreciation to State Police for covering the City of Santa Fe and protecting our community as we grieve this loss. We also extend our deepest appreciation to the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office for their assistance with coverage.
We also wish to thank our public safety partners with the Santa Fe Fire Department, Santa Fe County Fire Department, Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office, New Mexico State Police, Albuquerque Police Department, Sandoval County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigations and Homeland Security Investigations for their assistance and their personnel that responded to this incident.
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New Mexico State Police is the lead agency in the on-going investigation into the kidnapping and crash. Here is a link to the release they have provided.
Anyone who witnessed the suspect vehicle after the traffic crash, the occupants of the vehicle or has any information related to this investigation, is encouraged to contact State Police Sergeant Andrew Jorgenson at 505-490-3871 or agent Wyatt Harwell at 505-316-5254.