Man who allegedly shot Farmington police officer sentenced on federal charge

An Aztec man who allegedly shot a Farmington police officer has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty late last year in federal court to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

Elias Buck, 24, pleaded guilty to the charge on Dec. 8, 2022, in connection with an incident that took place on Jan. 7, 2022. According to the plea agreement and other court records quoted in a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico, Farmington police responded to a report that day of a man in a black Cadillac who possibly was driving under the influence. The vehicle in question was located, but the driver allegedly fled at a high rate of speed, losing his police pursuers.

Shortly thereafter, another officer located the black Cadillac in the parking lot of a nearby fast food restaurant and learned from a pair of witnesses that the two occupants of the vehicle had fled on foot, the news release stated. A third officer, Joseph Barreto, soon spotted two men walking across a nearby dirt lot and approached them, at which point he recognized Buck from a flier that had been circulated after he allegedly had escaped from a jail in Durango, Colorado, a week earlier.

The news release stated that Barreto asked Buck and the other man to sit down, at which point Buck allegedly pulled a pistol from his pocket and pointed it at Barreto’s face. The officer raised his arm to shield his face, and when Buck allegedly pulled the trigger, the bullet passed through Barreto’s arm. Buck then allegedly shot the officer a second time in the elbow before fleeing the scene, according to the release.

Buck was taken into custody a little more than a month later in Phoenix after he was recognized by a security guard in a convenience store, the release stated.

At the time of his offense, according to the release Buck had a prior conviction for attempted possession of dangerous drugs for sale. That conviction left him legally unable to possess a firearm or ammunition.

Chief Steve Hebbe of the Farmington Police Department addressed the court during Buck’s March 22 sentencing hearing, explaining that the long-term impact of the shooting was significant.

“We had not had an officer shot in the line of duty in over 30 years, and that means every officer on my agency had never lived through an officer-involved shooting, had never experienced it,” he was quoted as saying in the news release.

Hebbe called the incident a shocking event for his department and then addressed Judge Kea W. Riggs directly.

“… today is singular for you in that you have a chance to say, as a federal judge, the pinnacle of the criminal justice system, to say in no uncertain terms that assaults on our criminal justice system, assaults on our police officers is absolutely not tolerable; that whatever the vitriol, whatever the second-guessing, whatever the climate has been over the last few years, that does not excuse, it does not belittle, it does not minimize the impact of a crime like this,” he was quoted as saying in the news release.

In his sentencing remarks, the judge noted that Buck had altered the officer’s life and the lives of his family members. According to the release, Barreto still does not have full range of motion in his arm.

“It is a ripple effect,” the judge was quoted as saying. “It's a ripple effect through his family, on the Department, and through that community . . .  I'm thankful that our officer is alive and able to continue to work, but you're lucky that you're alive and here, and you need to think about that.”

The release states that Buck will be subject to three years of supervision once he is released from prison.

Buck initially was charged with third-degree felony counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm and aggravated battery on a peace officer, along with a fourth-degree felony count of tampering with evidence by the San Juan County District Attorney’s Office. Those charges were dismissed in a procedural move while the federal case against him unfolded. Prosecutor Dustin O’Brien said April 10 that the third-degree felony charge of aggravated battery on a peace officer and the fourth-degree felony count of tampering with evidence against Buck were refiled on April 3.

Mike Easterling can be reached at 505-564-4610 or measterling@daily-times.com.

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This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Elias Buck draws 10 years on federal charge, still faces local charges