Albuquerque Police Department, New Mexico
End of Watch: Sunday, February 22, 1987
Age: 27
Tour of Duty: 6 years
Badge Number: 547
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: February 22, 1987
Weapon Used: Handgun; 9 mm
Suspect Info: Appeal for new trial denied in 1995
Officer John Carrillo was shot and killed while he and another officer were investigating a domestic dispute at 4613 Hilltop Place NE in Albuquerque.
The officers responded to a residence in an affluent neighborhood after receiving a call from a woman who claimed she had been beaten. The man invited them to look around after saying no woman was in the home.
After following the man upstairs, he suddenly grabbed a briefcase that contained a handgun and opened fire on the officers, striking Officer Carrillo, who was not wearing a vest, in the chest. The other officer on the scene pulled Officer Carrillo out of the line of fire while returning fire. He later received the Medal of Valor for his bravery.
The suspect, a physicist at Sandia National Laboratories, was arrested and charged with murder and several counts of attempted murder. He was found guilty after two trials and sentenced to life in prison. Officer Carrillo's tape recorder was on and recorded the whole incident, refuting the suspect's defense that he fired on the officers in self-defense. The suspect's appeal for a new trial was denied in 1995.
Officer Carrillo had served with the Albuquerque Police Department for six years. He was survived by his infant son, parents, and six siblings.