To’hajiilee Shooting: Cops Ambushed, Suspect Wounded

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To’hajiilee, NM – A shootout erupted March 6, 2026, leaving two Navajo Nation Police officers wounded and a 29-year-old man facing federal charges. Russell Secatero allegedly opened fire on the officers responding to reports of gunfire near his residence, setting off a chaotic scene that ended with both he and the cops injured.

According to court records, Secatero barricaded himself in a closet attached to the house and unleashed a barrage of gunfire with a rifle. Officer John Doe took hits to the arm and back, while Officer Jane Doe was struck by shrapnel when a round ricocheted off her firearm. Doe managed to return fire, wounding Secatero before authorities secured the scene.

Investigators recovered two AR-style rifles and multiple shell casings from the closet where Secatero was holed up. Both officers and Secatero were rushed to a local hospital for treatment. Secatero, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, is now charged with two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and two counts of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.

Secatero remains in federal custody, awaiting trial. A conviction could land him 20 years in prison. The FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office led the investigation, working alongside the Navajo Police Department and the Navajo Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan is prosecuting the case.