Galleries suffer more art thefts

NEW MEXICO

SANTA FE -- A string of art thefts that began with the December disappearance of a Georgia O'Keeffe painting is continuing, as three works by other artists have been confirmed missing. A pinewood carving by Celso Gallegos was stolen from the Museum of International Folk Art sometime during March 12-14, State Cultural Affairs Secretary Stuart Ashman confirmed Friday. The carving, titled "Flight into Egypt," depicts the Virgin Mary and the infant Jesus on a horse being led by Joseph. The museum valued the piece at $2,500 to $3,500. An oil work by American abstract painter Stuart Davis was stolen Tuesday afternoon from a gallery. It was valued at $125,000. A Billy The Kid bronze statue was taken from another gallery Tuesday evening, according to police. The gallery valued it at $4,400. Police didn't know if the three thefts were connected, or if they were related to other recent heists. (AP)

Missile case figure won't be deported

ALBUQUERQUE -- A Canadian man cleared of stockpiling hundreds of missile warheads at his southern New Mexico counterterrorism school will not be deported despite having violated his business visitor's status, an immigration law judge ruled. David Hudak can leave the United States voluntarily and reapply for a new visa from his hometown of Vancouver, B.C., Judge Penny Smith said in a ruling filed Friday in El Paso, Texas. The business visitor's violation occurred in 2002 when Hudak conducted day-to-day management of his company, High Energy Access Tools, or HEAT, for about 10 weeks, Smith found. Hudak had sought to become a permanent US resident. (AP)

OREGON

Officer hit, kills shooter, police say

ROGUE RIVER -- An Oregon State Police officer who was shot in the chest in a state park but not seriously injured fired back and killed his attacker, who was wanted by the FBI for a string of bank robberies in Nevada. Officer Nick Neville was wearing a bulletproof vest at the time of the shooting late Friday in Valley of the Rogue State Park. He was hospitalized in stable condition yesterday, according to state police. Neville was on a routine patrol of the park when a man stopped him to ask for directions, said Captain Joe Puckett with the Jackson County Sheriff's Department. The trooper asked the man for identification, and the man pulled out a .38 revolver and fired. The trooper shot back and killed him, Puckett said. The fugitive's identity would not be released until his family was notified, police said. (AP)