A police report from Albuquerque shows that a Manzano High School Assistant Principal, James Chacho, was shot multiple times near Albuquerque's Northeast Heights. The alleged shooter, Craig Cuthbert, believed that Chacho was having an affair with Cuthbert's wife. Cuthbert was then found outside a nearby church, where he had allegedly shot himself. The investigation is still underway, and students of Manzano High School will have a crisis intervention team visit their students and staff.
According to the Albuquerque Journal, a Manzano High School assistant principal was shot and critically injured at Albuquerque's Northeast Heights. The alleged shooter believed that this assistant principal, James Chacho, was having an affair with his wife.
The shooting occurred at around 8:45 PM, and officer Tanner Tixier found Chacho in a car at a business center at 9201 Montgomery NE. He had multiple gunshot wounds to his chest and neck, and it was reports of the gunshots that led the police to the crime scene.
Chacho, who is also a spokesman for Albuquerque Public Schools as well as an assistant principal, was taken to the hospital in critical condition where he underwent surgery.
Officer Tixier has stated that "The investigation revealed Chacho had been confronted earlier in the day by 46-year-old Craig Cuthbert who believed Chacho was having an affair with his wife." Investigators believe that Cuthbert texted Chacho to meet so he could apologize, but then shot him multiple time. Cuthbert then fled to the Faith Lutheran Church at 10000 Spain NE, where he then allegedly shot himself. The police found Cuthbert on the steps of the church near Eubank and Spain in a puddle of blood with the gun next to him.
A potential witness to the crime is Navarre Nation, who works a security firm at the business center in Montgomery. He said that he saw a man pull into the parking lot honking and "making a big racket and looking like he was really haggard". He could not tell what was going on, but it sounds like he was hearing Chacho trying to get attention after being allegedly shot by Cuthbert.
By the time that Nation heard the noise, other people started calling to report the gunshots. For example, Lorna Adams, who lives near the Lutheran church at Wyoming and Spain said that she heard one gunshot. A half-hour later, she was taking a walk with her boyfriend near the church and saw a young woman crying and screaming into her phone.
According to KOB.com, an Albuquerque Public Schools spokesperson, Rigo Chavez, says that the Manzano High School has a crisis intervention team in place to assist students and staff today. Chavez said that classes would be kept on a regular schedule and counselors will remain on campus for "as long as necessary".
