Man murdered west of Custer
A Texas man was gunned to death by a Custer/Rapid City man last Friday, April 12.
At around 9:47 p.m. that day Custer County Dispatch received a call from Monument Health that there was a patient at the hospital who had been assaulted, and there had also been a shooting at that same victim's residence about one mile west of Custer.
According to Custer County Sheriff Marty Mechaley, deputies responded to the scene of the reported shooting and found a man deceased from apparent gunshot wounds.
An investigation began and a suspect, Pablo Andrade, 32, was identified, as was the 2011 Chevy pickup in which the suspect had fled the scene.
Emergency phone pings to the Andrade's cell phone revealed he had recenlty been in Torrington, Wyo. It was surmised Andrade was headed southbound toward Denver, Colo., and Wyoming law enforcement was informed.
Wyoming law enforcement located the vehicle and an attempt to stop the vehicle took place. Andrade did not stop, and a pursuit took place southbound on Interstate 25. The pursuit continued south from Cheyenne, Wyo., into Colorado at around 2 a.m.
Larimer (Colo.) County Sheriff’s Office deputies and Colorado State Patrol troopers prepared to deploy tire spikes near the Buckeye exit in Colorado, and Andrade shot at law enforcement and continued traveling south at high speeds. According to a press release from Larimer County deputies ultimately performed a precision immobilization technique to stop the pickup just south of the Hwy. 1/Wellington exit. Andrade stayed inside the truck, and before deputies could contact him, he shot himself.
Lifesaving measures were performed, but Andrade was pronounced dead at the scene.
A handgun was recovered from Andrade’s vehicle. Law enforcement did not fire any weapons during the incident, and no other injuries were reported.
“This was an extremely dangerous situation involving an armed suspect with a disturbing disregard for public safety,” said Larimer County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Troy Badberg. “Dispatchers, investigators and peace officers across multiple states worked together quickly and did everything they could to prevent harm to innocent people.”
Mechaley said Andrade forced his way into the residence in Custer, assaulting a female victim and shooting the man before fleeing. There were children in the residence at the time of the incident as well.
Jonathan Rawls, 39, has been identified as the deceased gunshot victim.
In South Dakota, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, Custer County Sheriff’s Office and South Dakota Highway Patrol all responded to the incident.
Further south, the Larmier County Sheriff’s Office, Laramie County Sheriff’s Office, Cheyenne Police Department, Wyoming Highway Patrol and Colorado State Patrol were all involved during the incident.
Mechaley said he appreciates the diligence from all the responding agencies in their response to the incident.
“If this would have continued any further other people would have been hurt,” he said.
Mechaley said two days later an unattended death was reported at Big D in Custer, when a welfare check was requested for a person in a semi parked at the station.
Authorities were unable to make contact with the driver of the truck, and when access was gained the man, a 51-year-old from St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, was found deceased. No foul play is suspected, Mechaley said, and an autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death.