A Rio Arriba County sheriff's deputy allegedly robbed a Santa Fe pharmacy at gunpoint Monday morning and fled into a nearby field where he paced back and forth holding his weapon to his own head for more than two hours before negotiators convinced him to surrender.

Santa Fe Police Department Captain Gary Johnson said officers responded to a report of a robbery at Del Norte Pharmacy and Home Medical at 1691 Galisteo St. around 10:20 a.m. Monday and arrived on scene just as the suspect was heading back to his pick-up truck.

The suspect, whom police have identified as 37-year-old Brian Vigil, then slipped into a weedy overgrown lot between Harkle Road and St. Michael's Drive.

For the next two hours police negotiators communicated with Vigil by cell phone while he stayed in the field where, according to witnesses, he alternated between sitting down, standing up and cursing at police, all while holding a gun to his own head. "He basically took himself hostage," said Johnson.

Vigil — who has been on light duty since January because of a head injury he received on the job — asked negotiators for the prescription-only pain killer Oxycontin during the standoff, Johnson said.

The incident caused traffic snarls, frustration and worry for many Monday morning as parts of St. Michael's Drive, Harkle Road and Galisteo Street were closed down. E.J. Martinez Elementary School was also locked down during the standoff and several nearby business were evacuated.

Employees of some of those business had to walk out of the area to safety because the roads they would have used to leave were closed or clogged with re-routed motorists.

"There is still a guy that is walking around with a gun so I need you to go as far away as possible," one police officer told a motorist attempting to turn south on Galisteo just east of the field where the suspect was holding off police.

Just before 11 a.m. one young woman, who apparently worked at the pharmacy, walked north on Galisteo to meet friends who had arrived to pick her up at the corner of Galisteo Street and San Mateo Road.

"We just got robbed," said the woman, who was dressed in medical scrubs. "A masked robber came in and robbed the Del Norte Pharmacy. He's there with a gun to his head," said the woman who said she was too "freaked out" to talk more and didn't want to give her name.

Johnson confirmed Vigil had a "cloth or something" tied raound his face when he robbed the pharmacy. Vigil didn't get any money from the business, but may have made off with some "narcotics," Johnson said.

Syd Walter, a psychotherapist whose office is on Harkle Road near the field where Vigil took refuge from police, said an armed officer knocked on his office door around 11:45 a.m. and told him he needed to leave.

"She had her gun drawn," Walter said. "She said 'It's very serious, and you need to leave,' so I was willing to take that."

About 20 officers were on scene throughout the standoff including Santa Fe City Police and Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office deputies. Vigil's boss Rio Arriba County Sheriff Joe Mascareñas also waited on a side street throughout the early afternoon until Vigil gave up and was transported by ambulance to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center.

Vigil's career in law-enforcement has been studded with noteworthy incidents both good and bad.

He was questioned in 2001 regarding the whereabouts of a .44 caliber Smith and Wesson revolver that he had allegedly confiscated from a suspect but which later couldn't be located.

Police could not confirm the type of weapon Vigil used to rob the pharmacy Monday.

No one was injured, and no shots were fired during the standoff. "He gave up without any injuries," Johnson said. "We've got some pretty sharp negotiators."

Johnson said the negotiation team, lead by Detective Tony Trujillo, talked to Vigil about family and the value of his own life as they tried to convince him to surrender to them.

"They were able to convince the man it was not worth losing his life over this incident," Johnson said.

Julie Ann Grimm contributed to this story.

Contact Phaedra Haywood at 986-3068 or phaywood@sfnewmexican.com