By Gregory Hasman
Albuquerque Journal

TIJERAS, N.M. — Honor guards from the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office and Bernalillo County Fire Rescue stood watch at the East Mountain Memorial Wall on Tuesday evening to honor four men who died in a 2022 helicopter crash in northern New Mexico.

As they stood, dozens of people walked up to the wall. Some kissed their fingers, then placed them over the name of a loved one on the wall, while others kneeled in front of the name.

“We can never forget those guys for what they did for us,” said Tim Sheahan, who came to remember the first responders.

On July 16, 2022, Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office Undersheriff Larry Koren, 55; Lt. Fred Beers, 51; Deputy Michael Levison, 30; and Bernalillo County Fire Rescue Specialist Matthew King, 44, were returning to Albuquerque after conducting firefighting operations near Chapelle, south of Las Vegas, when BCSO’s Metro 2 helicopter crashed.

Andrew Levison, brother of Michael Levison, told the Journal that, earlier in the day, he went to the crash site. As he walked to a memorial consisting of an American flag and pieces of the helicopter honoring the men, Andrew said he thought about their sacrifices.

“I’m proud of them for what they were doing that day,” Andrew said. “They were doing God’s work, in my opinion.”

While some time has passed since the incident, the memories remain fresh for many family members and friends.

“For the longest time, I thought it was just a bad dream,” said Noëlle Ashoo, Michael Levison’s partner. “Even after the first year, I thought this was a messed-up drama.”

‘A true brother’

While some people walked to the memorial, others intermingled with other relatives or members of the sheriff’s office and fire rescue.

Retired BCSO Sgt. Nathan Lerner was talking to some of King’s family when he said Beers was the “perfect mensch,” which is Yiddish for a person with integrity and honor.

Beers was not only a smart man, he said, but “he would never have anything bad to say about anybody.”

“He was a true brother,” Lerner said.

Sheahan said he remembered Beers and Koren as being “very dedicated at their jobs and dedicated to the people of Bernalillo County .”

King was known for his passion for his job, his desire to serve others, and his sense of humor.

“He would make you laugh until you couldn’t stand it,” his father, James King, said.

James said he had a tough time talking about his son’s death, but two years later, he is able to “talk about Matt a lot.”

“Every day is tough, and I imagine it’s going to be tough for quite a while,” James said.

‘We have more questions’

Tuesday’s remembrance took place just weeks after the National Transportation Safety Board issued its final report on the crash investigation. In it, federal investigators said engine failure due to poor maintenance caused the crash.

Andrew said the report made his parents “angry, disappointed and frustrated” because the incident could have been prevented.

“Why did this happen?” Andrew asked. “Why did we lose our family member?

“This didn’t get our family closure to any degree. We have more questions.”

Ashoo said she hasn’t brought herself to read the report. “It won’t bring him back,” she said, “so it changes nothing for me.”

While the report may not change things or bring closure, Andrew said the next step is “to prevent this from happening to anybody else.”

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NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Blue Hole, a New Mexico tourist hotspot that attracts thousands during the summertime, is closed to divers and swimmers. Businesses in the area that rely heavily on the influx of summer visitors looking to enjoy all the water recreation the city has to offer are now dealing with the effects of the closure.

People come from all over the country for the experience but the recent announcement has drastically reduced how many people are coming into town. City officials said the closure is due to a large boulder falling on the west side of the hole that brought other rocks with it.

Officials said hundreds of stones now cover the bottom. “Public safety comes first. We’ll make sure before we reopen to the public, we’ll make sure everything is protected and we’ll try to get more inspection on it,” said Santa Rosa Mayor Nelson Kotiar.

Due to the closure, businesses in town aren’t seeing the number of customers they usually do. That includes the Comet II Drive & Restaurant that’s been operating for over 90 years. “We rely on the tourists here, and without a lot of the vital things that we have here, we don’t have that,” said owner Casey Martinez.

Normally, Martinez said he could expect thousands of customers during the summer. He said since the closure, business has decreased by 30%-40%. “We have the divers that come in here. On a given weekend, we’d have 100 divers in here. Now, we’re lucky if we have five or ten,” said Martinez.

City officials said they will be conducting more inspections and expect the spot to open within the next 2-4 weeks.

NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Multiple law enforcement personnel are being recognized for their contributions to help alleviate the nation’s drug epidemic. A New Mexico officer made the list.

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) has released a list of officials and agencies recognized for their work to fight against criminal networks and drug trafficking. The honorees were dignified for their achievements at the United States Interdiction Coordinator Awards.

“Since Day One, President Biden has taken historic action and made historic investments to support law enforcement and drug-related crime prevention as part of his whole-of-society effort to address the overdose epidemic,” said ONDCP Director Dr. Rahul Gupta. “I’m proud to honor the heroic efforts of these law enforcement leaders today who are working tirelessly around the clock to prevent deadly drugs from reaching our communities and hurting vulnerable Americans. The Biden-Harris Administration is grateful for their steadfast partnership, and will continue to support life-saving law enforcement efforts to reduce overdoses, deprive drug traffickers of their profits, and keep Americans safe.”

ONDCP recognized New Mexico State Police Officer Julian Armijo for “highway interdictions” after an incident in September 2023. Armijo was conducting a traffic stop when he noticed “indicators of criminal activity,” which provoked a probable cause search. He reportedly found 10.5 kilograms of fentanyl pills. The driver was charged for possession. The investigation also uncovered details in the murder of Froylan Villegas, an 11-year-old boy. Villegas was outside of Isotopes Park in a vehicle with his cousin, Tatiana Villegas, when he was shot and killed. His cousin was also injured.

Other categories recognized include: Special recognition, maritime interdiction, land interdiction, international investigations, illicit finance, emerging threats, domestic investigations, and cyber investigations.

Officials with the Biden-Harris Administration said they have been addressing the overdose epidemic through law enforcement funding. To learn about the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Program, click here.

Read about how the White House is funding law enforcement to tackle these issues by clicking here.