A tribal police officer was shot and killed during a traffic stop in Whiteriver, Arizona, on Thursday, the Navajo County Sherriff’s Office (NCSO) said in a statement.
The fallen officer was later identified as Adrian Lopez Sr., 35, of the White Mountain Apache Police Department (WMAPD) at a press conference on Friday. Lopez had joined the department this January and was previously an officer in the Bureau of Indian affairs. Lopez leaves behind a wife and a child.
The suspected shooter, Kevin Dwight Nashio, 25, stole the slain officer’s vehicle and was pursued by multiple police vehicles through the Fort Apache Indian Reservation into the Hawley Lake area in Eastern Arizona. The pursuit went on for approximately 40 miles through the reservation, according to NSCO Chief Deputy Brian Swanty in a press conference on Friday.
Swanty further stated that a “rolling gun…
