Shoplifting leads to chase and arrests in Alamosa

A man and a woman were arrested after a shoplifting incident and vehicle pursuit in Alamosa on Sunday morning.

Around 6:40 a.m. Sunday, the Alamosa Police Department received a report of a shoplifter at Walmart. While responding, they were notified that the female suspect fled the store with a male driver in a black BMW.

Officers located the vehicle on Main Street in Alamosa but the driver refused to stop. A chase ensued, continuing east on US 160 into Costilla County.

Deputies with the Costilla County Sheriff’s Office deployed stop sticks about 12 miles east of Fort Garland, flattening the two rear tires of the BMW. The car still continued eastbound on flat tires for several more miles. A trooper then used the Tactical Vehicle Intervention (TVI) maneuver to spin the vehicle.

The driver, 49-year-old Bernard Ernest Trujillo of Denver, is charged with felony eluding, DUI, possession of a weapon by a previous offender, possession of an illegal weapon, resisting arrest, as well as numerous other charges. Trujillo also had an active US Marshal’s warrant out of Denver or probation violation on previous weapons charges. He was booked into the Alamosa County Jail.

The passenger, 24-year-old Amber Sanchez of Denver, was taken into custody and released to Alamosa Police Department for the shoplifting at Walmart.