Homicide suspect apprehended near San Jon

A homicide suspect from South Carolina was apprehended early Friday after being the subject of a search for several hours near San Jon.

Arrested was David Banacek Tracy, 45, on South Carolina charges of attempted murder, discharging a weapon into a vehicle and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to a news release Friday from New Mexico State Police.

According to the release, state police were contacted about 5 p.m. Thursday by the sheriff’s office of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, requesting assistance in finding the suspect.

Spartanburg County authorities had reason to believe Tracy was traveling west on Interstate 40 in a sport utility vehicle towing a while trailer and that he had been reported in Amarillo two hours earlier. State policed and officers from Tucumcari and the surrounding area began searching for Tracy on I-40.

State police at 6:21 p.m. Thursday encountered the suspects vehicle at a Valero gas station in San Jon. After seeing the officers, Tracy ran out of the station through the back and southwest. Tracy was traveling with a woman who was detained, released and not charged with any crime, state police stated.

State police called for additional help, including the NMSP tactical team, aerial drone unit and its helicopter to begin a search.

The helicopter crew at 12:10 a.m. Friday spotted Tracy hiding in rough terrain along old Route 66 two miles west of San Jon, just north of I-40. State police took him into custody without incident and booked him into the Quay County Detention Center in Tucumcari. Tracy also faces criminal charges in New Mexico.

Logan Municipal Schools in a text Thursday night instructed parents to not pick up their children in San Jon after a volleyball match in Grady “due to an ongoing law enforcement situation.”

“New Mexico State Police would like to thank the assistance of the Quay County Sheriff’s Office and the citizens of San Jon who called in with tips that led to the capture and arrest of Tracy,” the release stated.