By Roger Lanse
On Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, at about 8:17 p.m., a Bayard Police Department officer attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a black Ford pickup travelling south at an estimated 87 mph in a 55-mph zone on Highway 180 near the Bayard Cemetery. According to a BPD incident report, the driver of the pickup, later identified as Christopher Amador, 36, of Silver City, ignored the officer's lights and sirens and turned onto North Hurley Road heading south. Jumping the curb at the dead-end of North Hurley Road (Diaz Street), the driver re-entered Highway 180 southbound. After reaching speeds of up to 117 mph, the driver exited Highway 180 onto Airport Road and then onto Whitewater Road.
Due to unsafe visibility conditions from the dust created by the fleeing vehicle and extreme speeds, the officer terminated the pursuit.
However, the next day, Friday, the 13th, at about 2 p.m. a New Mexico State Police officer advised the BPD officer, that a NM Game and Fish officer and a U.S. Forest Service officer had located the fleeing vehicle on Jack's Peak.
The report said, when the BPD officer arrived at the Jack's Peak location at approximately 2:30 p.m. on the 13th, he found the black Ford pickup had collided with a tree, suffering extensive damage and was resting on top of the tree. A glass pipe with burnt residue and multiple syringes were located on the ground by the rear passenger-side tire.
A witness told officers he was out mountain lion hunting on the 13th and came upon the crash site with the driver in the driver's seat, the driver telling him he had been stranded at the crash site all night. The driver asked for a ride to a Silver City address, which the witness provided. Later, the witness positively identified the driver as Christopher Amador.
Amador has been charged with aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer, tampering with evidence, reckless driving, criminal damage to property, leaving the scene of an accident, evidence of drug paraphernalia, and littering.
