ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO – An inmate at the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Detention Center has died following an apparent suicide attempt while in custody.
Jail officials identified the inmate as 41‑year‑old Luis Sanchez, who had been booked into MDC on February 17. According to the detention center, Sanchez reportedly attempted suicide on Sunday, April 5.
A corrections officer discovered Sanchez in medical distress at approximately 6:19 p.m. MDC staff, along with medical personnel from UNM Hospital, responded and administered life‑saving measures. Despite those efforts, Sanchez was pronounced dead at 6:51 p.m. by UNM Hospital staff.
Sanchez was being held on multiple felony charges, including child abuse resulting in death, in connection with a domestic shooting at a home in Tijeras. Investigators say Sanchez is accused of shooting his wife and their two children. One child died at the scene, while Sanchez’s wife and one‑year‑old child were transported to the hospital with gunshot wounds. His wife is an assistant district attorney with Bernalillo County.
Because of that connection, the New Mexico Department of Justice has assumed prosecution of the case. Sanchez had recently made his first court appearance, and prosecutors were seeking to have him held in custody pending trial.
The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office has been notified of Sanchez’s death. The incident is under investigation by the MDC Office of Professional Standards, along with BCSO. The New Mexico Office of the Medical Investigator will determine the official cause and manner of death.
