Jon Johnson Photo/Gila Herald: Police believe Nathaniel Gomez broke into the Gila Valley Consolidated District Court building at 702 S. 8th Avenue and caused bloody damage before being found in a Safford resident’s garden I’m here.
An autopsy report from the Safford-Pima County coroner’s office lists the cause of death as “undetermined” for a man who died while in Safford police custody.
Nathaniel James Gomez, 33, from Morenci, died in the early hours of July 7 after being found naked and covered in blood in a Safford resident’s garden.
According to Pima County coroner Dr. Gregory Hess, the cause of death was due to “the combined effects of methamphetamine poisoning, foreign body airway obstruction, sharp force injuries, and physical arguing exertion.”
It’s that last part that the Arizona Department of Public Safety is still investigating the death. The vigorous exercise that followed the physical altercation seems to explain Gomez’s behavior after being approached by police officers.
Autopsy and toxicology reports listed 3,900 ng/mL of blood positive for methamphetamine poisoning. The report also listed several “sharp injuries” to Gomez’s scalp, right hand and right wrist. As well as “blunt trauma” in the upper and lower extremities. Toxicology reports report blood levels of 200-600 ng/mL in methamphetamine abusers who exhibit violent and irrational behavior. High doses of methamphetamine can also cause restlessness, confusion, hallucinations, circulatory failure, and convulsions, according to reports.
Safford Police and the Arizona Department of Public Safety closed down Seventh Avenue from Eighth to Tenth Avenues and Ninth to Seventh to Eighth Avenues for the day’s investigation. DPS has taken the lead on the investigation, which is ongoing and is estimated to be completed in about a month.
Officers were first dispatched to the 700 block on Ninth Avenue around 4 a.m. Thursday regarding the reported robbery attempt, according to a press release from the SPD that day.
When officers arrived, they found the bloody man acting “out of control and in a state of confusion,” according to the release.
While attempting treatment, subject became belligerent, and officers subdued him using tasers and pepper spray.
According to the press release, medical professionals attempted to rescue the subject, but the subject was not resuscitated and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Further information from historical law enforcement provided an autopsy list that was reported to police when Gomez was found naked and bloodied in the front yard of a local residence. It also led to the Gila Valley Consolidated District Court building at 702 S. 8th Avenue. The building had been torn down and inside was a horror show of bloody walls and damage.
Doors were smashed down, desk material was strewn about, and walls were sprayed with what appeared to be Gomez’s blood. Investigators believe Gomez may have been injured during the break-in to the courthouse, causing all the blood on the building and himself when he was found.
When police arrived, body camera footage reportedly showed Gomez acting erratically in agitation. Gomez then consumed an unknown paper product, causing an airway obstruction. This is his one of the causes of his death.
The autopsy report stated police officers used pepper spray, and although the TASER had little effect on Gomez, his breathing became more difficult over time after swallowing the paper. became. Shortly after officers handcuffed Gomez, he became unresponsive. EMS were on-site and had to intubate Gomez to clear his airway blockage before he could breathe, and resuscitation was unsuccessful.
The DPS investigation into the death of Nathanial James Gomez is ongoing.
