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Russell Wheeler, 49, of Los Lunas, appeared in federal court on August 3 for a detention hearing, charged with being a felon in possession of a gun and ammunition. Wheeler will remain in custody pending trial.
According to Wheeler’s arrest warrant affidavit, on May 22, he shot a man in the face on the street outside a house on Lake View Drive. The man was taken to a local emergency care center by an unknown person and ultimately transported to the University of New Mexico hospital by ambulance, according to the affidavit.
A witness at the Lake View home told officers he was outside working on his vehicle when he heard someone say, “Don’t step on me! When the witness walked to his door, he saw Wheeler point a small black gun at another man and then shoot him.
Wheeler fled on a motorcycle, according to the witness. When the victim was questioned at the hospital by the Valencia County Sheriff’s Detective, it emerged that many teeth were missing and the jaw bone was broken. The victim said she did not know the man who shot her.
According to a press release from the US Department of Justice, Wheeler was convicted of possession of a controlled substance in 2005 and aggravated for fleeing law enforcement in 2007, both crimes. As a previously convicted felon, Wheeler cannot legally own any firearms or ammunition.
If convicted, Wheeler faces up to 10 years in prison.
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