Deputy Sheriff Thomas Chesley Bedford Jr., 30, of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office in New Mexico was killed on October 8, 1979, while investigating a string of burglaries in the Nogal area. During his patrol he encountered two individuals, one armed with a rifle. After instructing them to place the rifle on the hood of his patrol car and beginning to question them, one suspect took a handgun from the other’s pocket and shot Deputy Bedford. After he fell, the assailant stood over him and fired four additional shots.

The two perpetrators fled but were later apprehended. Both were convicted of capital murder and given life sentences. Bedford had been with the sheriff’s office for a short time and was survived by his wife and two children. A sheriff’s department substation was named in his honor.

Does anyone have memories of Deputy Bedford, the Nogal-area burglaries, or information about the case to share?