The Navajo County Sheriff’s Office took delivery of a multi-use utility vehicle that has the capability to withstand large-caliber gunfire. The vehicle was delivered from Alpine Armoring in Virginia on January 21, 2025, after a six-month wait while it was being built to the specifications desired by the Sheriff’s Office.
This vehicle has multiple uses relating to providing public safety, access to remote areas, and protection for the deputies who respond to violent encounters that involve gunfire. The vehicle is built around a Ford F600 chassis and is equipped with a diesel engine due to heavy weight. The vehicle has the capability to carry a total of 10 passengers, including the driver. The vehicle is four-wheel drive and is equipped with a 44,000-pound winch.
The need for this type of vehicle was clearly recognized this past summer as regional law enforcement came under heavy gunfire as they responded to calls for service. In April 2024, NCSO deputies responded to a call for service in the Lakeside area and upon arrival began to receive multiple gunfire rounds striking the fully marked NCSO patrol vehicle, shattering the glass and striking the headrest on the passenger side of the vehicle, narrowly missing the deputy driving the vehicle. The responding deputies were able to find cover and established a perimeter to contain the suspect. The White Mountain Special Response Team (SRT) responded to the scene utilizing the armored vehicle that was purchased by the City of Show Low a few years ago. Immediately upon arrival of the armored vehicle, the suspect began firing large caliber rifle rounds at the vehicle, striking it in the passenger side windshield, less than 18 inches from the face of an NCSO Sergeant. Without the robust protection of the vehicle, the large caliber round would have certainly killed the Sergeant.
Later in the summer of 2024, deputies from Apache County Sheriff’s Office responded to a call for service in the Vernon area. Upon arrival, the deputies began to receive multiple gunshots from a heavily armed suspect barricaded in a residence. The bullets were striking the dirt and trees immediately around them and they were pinned down, unable to retreat to cover. The White Mountain SRT responded to the scene with an armored vehicle and upon arrival began taking numerous small arms rounds to the front and sides of the vehicle. The arrival of the armored vehicle allowed the deputies on-scene to gain protective cover at the vehicle. The suspect continued to fire multiple rounds at the armored vehicle for many more hours until the SWAT Team from the Arizona Department of Public Safety arrived and shot the suspect.
In both cases, the suspect survived the incident and are currently in custody. The suspect from the April 2024 incident has been sentenced to 21 years in the Arizona Department of Corrections and the suspect from the Vernon incident is still awaiting trial, but in custody in Apache County.
Sheriff David Clouse stated, “Unfortunately, the need for this type of equipment is becoming necessary to provide protection of the law enforcement as they are responding to increasingly violent calls for service.”
This utility vehicle was purchased with existing funds in the current budget thanks to financial savings enabled by multiple grant awards and savings from the ARPA-funded regional communication project. The Sheriff’s Office will stage this vehicle in Holbrook and is available to respond to provide support anywhere in the region to provide protection for our citizens and the law enforcement personnel that respond fearlessly to potentially violent situations.
