Police in New Mexico fatally shot a man after responding to the wrong address during a domestic violence call Wednesday.
According to a statement from the New Mexico Department of Public Safety, Farmington police officers mistakenly approached the home at around 11:30 p.m.
Officers knocked on the door and announced they were police. When no one responded, they asked dispatch to contact the caller to open the door, police said.
Eventually, the homeowner, identified as 52-year-old Robert Dotson, opened the door armed with a handgun and was fatally shot, state police said.
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Dotson’s wife fired from the doorway of the residence but once she realized that the individuals were officers, she put the gun down and complied with the officer’s commands, according to state police.
Farmington Police Chief Steve Hebbe acknowledged in a video statement that officers mistakenly went to the wrong home.
"This ending is unbelievably tragic, I'm extremely sorry that we are in this position," Chief Hebbe said.
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The identities of the officers involved in the incident haven't been released as the investigation continues.
Farmington is a small city in the northwestern part of the state, about 150 miles north of Albuquerque.
