The Ambush Murder of Trooper Hare - Manhunt For The Killer

Patrolman Justin Hare was shot and killed at about 5:30 am while conducting a welfare check on a disabled vehicle that was stopped near mile marker 320 on I-40, west of Tucumcari.

As Patrolman Hare stopped behind the vehicle, the driver exited and walked to the cruiser's passenger window. The two had a short discussion, and as Patrolman Hare offered to drive the man into town, the subject suddenly produced a handgun and shot him. He shot him a second time before pushing him into the passenger seat. He then abducted him and stole the patrol car, abandoning it approximately 16 miles away and fleeing on foot.

Patrolman Hare was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his wounds two hours later.

Unbeknownst to Patrolman Hare, the man was the suspect in the murder of an off-duty paramedic in South Carolina several days earlier and had been released a few months prior from prison on community supervision. The car he was driving belonged to the murder victim. The subject was arrested two days later after exchanging gunfire with a Bernalillo County sheriff's deputy. In 2025, he pleaded guilty to Carjacking Resulting in Death, Kidnapping Resulting in Death, and three felony firearm charges and was sentenced to life in prison.

Patrolman Hare had served with the New Mexico State Police for six years. He is survived by his girlfriend, two children, mother, father, and brother.

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