LOS LUNAS — Los Lunas Police Department experienced a surge in calls for service in 2023 compared to the last few years.
According to the department’s 2023 annual report, they received more than 37,800 calls for service in 2023, which is about a 30 percent increase from the roughly 28,900 calls received in 2022.
All other law enforcement and fire agencies in the county showed minimal differentiation in comparison.
Police Chief Frank Lucero
Los Lunas Police Department
Los Lunas Police Chief Frank Lucero said there are many moving parts behind these statistics, and feels the notable increase in calls for service can be attributed to several different factors — one being an increase in reporting from partners throughout the community, especially retail establishments.
“A lot of our retail partners are reporting shoplifting crimes more than ever before because a lot of these companies have really revamped their asset protection programs quite a bit,” Lucero said.
People choosing to report crime more frequently, Lucero said, isn’t necessarily a bad thing as it’s indicative of a healthy relationship between the community and police department.
“We work hard to maintain the trust and confidence of our community, and we’re open and accessible to their needs,” he said. “They’re contacting us when they need something, and that’s what we strive for.”
Being that Los Lunas is a rapidly growing community and the municipality with the highest population, Lucero said he thinks the rise in calls is also due to more traffic infractions.
According to the most recent Census data, Los Lunas now has a population of more than 18,000 people. For comparison, the second largest municipality, Belen, has a population of about 7,400.
“I think, for our agency, it’s a pretty safe bet that a third of our call volume is all traffic related,” said Lucero. “With the explosion of growth that we’re experiencing, there’s an increase in traffic-related infractions that we see throughout the day. Our officers are out there and they’re conducting a lot of traffic stops, so it’s really just a reflection of the growth that we’re experiencing in the city.”
In recent years, there has also been an increase in reported drug/narcotic violations and arrests in the village rising, from 40 incident reports in 2021, to 70 in 2022 and 133 in 2023. Drug/narcotic violations essentially means to be in possession of a controlled substance.
“We’re seeing a drastic increase in fentanyl use. It’s inexpensive, it’s readily available, and we’re seeing it in record quantities on the streets,” said Lucero. “And, essentially, drugs are the root cause for a lot of other types of crime.”
For example, incident reports of larceny/theft offenses documented by LLPD also increased in 2023 to 427 compared to 396 in 2022, and Lucero said substance abuse and addiction likely played a role in that as many crimes go hand in hand.
“We try to work past just the arrest, so we interview them and we find that these people that we’re arresting, many of them work for elaborate organizations that, in order to feed their drug habits, will go out and steal things,” Lucero said.
“They’re essentially given a list of things that are in high demand or things that are needed, so they’ll visit our retail partners here and they’ll steal things and provide the stolen property in exchange for drugs.”
The police chief said the rise in counterfeit fentanyl on the streets is a “terrible epidemic” the country is currently facing. It’s gotten so bad, he said, that the state enacted legislation in 2017 requiring every police officer to carry Narcan with them, which is used to revive individuals from opioid overdoses.
“Our officers administer (Narcan) frequently. It’s saved many lives, even just here in the village,” Lucero said.
LLPD has also seen a rise in driving under the influence arrests over the past three years with 82 in 2021, 85 in 2022 and 104 in 2023. Lucero said this is due to the department being much more proactive in searching for DUI offenders with the help of their drug recognition expert.
The 2023 annual report states that throughout the year DWI and traffic units conducted a variety of grant-funded checkpoints. These initiatives let officers focus solely on traffic safety enforcement allowing them to be proactive in combating DUIs and other threats to safety.
“They’re always out patrolling, looking for DWIs and we’re finding them,” Lucero said.
The increase in DUI arrests can also be attributed to the legalization of recreational cannabis, as Lucero said they are also seeing more marijuana-related DUIs.
“I think the important thing is to remind the public that while it’s legal to do, it’s still not legal to drive while you’re under the influence of it. And I think that could be a blurred line to some.”
The Los Lunas Police Department acquired its first drone in October 2023 to test as a proof of concept. LLPD Police Chief Frank Lucero said it has become an invaluable asset to the department and has been used on numerous occasions. Submitted photo.
It’s also important to remember, Lucero said, the refinement of marijuana has advanced, so it’s a lot more powerful than it used to be, which is all the more reason to not get behind the wheel while under the influence of it.
When it comes to reported instances of burglaries and robberies, both decreased in 2023 compared to 2022. Lucero said he feels this is because of the department’s close-working relationship with stakeholders, and officers frequently being out in the community which itself serves as a deterrent for theft and other crime.
“The community are our eyes and ears,” he said. “Obviously, we can’t be everywhere, but when we share information back and forth, it really helps us to conduct those proactive operations and act as a deterrent.”
Lucero said they also have been active at new build sites in town because there’s a lot of materials that are left overnight that become targets for theft.
“So our officers are in those areas throughout the night and those are residential areas, so by default, (officers) are hitting all the others,” said Lucero. “We also try to hit our business districts during the early morning and late night hours to be proactive in preventing commercial burglaries.”
Incident reports of auto theft also decreased in the village in 2023 compared to the year prior, as that has also been a big area of focus.
“We have conducted several undercover auto theft operations throughout the village all year and we also have bait cars that we deploy.”
Lucero said property crime also continues to be one of the LLPD’s top priorities.
“We still have our retail crime taskforce and we conduct undercover retail crime operations frequently, at various locations throughout the village.”
LLPD received over a million dollars in grant and external funding in 2023, a lot of which was used to update their aging fleet of vehicles. They also welcomed the addition of a drone and e-bike program to the department in 2023 which Lucero said have been invaluable assets.
“We have a hard working team of officers here that are very invested in our community,” Chief Lucero said. “The majority of us live here, work here, have children who go to school here, our spouses and families shop here, so we take this seriously and we work really hard to ensure that we make it as good and safe as we possibly can every day.”
Felina Martinez was born and raised in Valencia County. She graduated from the University of New Mexico in 2021. During her time at UNM, she studied interdisciplinary film, digital media and journalism. She covers the village of Los Lunas, Los Lunas Schools, the School of Dreams Academy and the town of Peralta.
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May 2, 2024
