District of New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE – Joshua Iben, 21, of Albuquerque, N.M., entered a not guilty plea in federal court this morning on a criminal complaint charging him with distribution, receipt and possession of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  Iben will remain in federal custody pending trial.

Iben was arrested yesterday based on an FBI investigation that began in July 2013 and revealed that an IP address subscribed to Iben’s residential address allegedly was being used to share child pornography images.  According to the criminal complaint, on Nov. 20, 2013, FBI agents executed a federal search warrant at Iben’s residence and seized computers and computer-related media.  A preliminary forensic examination of a laptop computer taken from Iben’s residence revealed that it contains images consistent with child pornography.     
           
If convicted of the charges in the criminal complaint, Iben faces a federal prison term of not less than five years and not more than 20 years.  If convicted, Iben also would be required to register as a sex offender.  Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations and criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark T. Baker as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

ALBUQUERQUE – Harley Harkness, 41, of Roswell, N.M., was sentenced today to 30 months in federal prison for his unlawful possession of firearms.  Harkness will be on supervised release for two years after he completes his prison sentence.

Harkness was arrested in March 2013, on a criminal complaint charging him with unlawful possession of firearms and possession of a stolen firearm.  According to the criminal complaint, Harkness committed these offenses on Jan. 13, 2013.  At the time, Harkness was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of the following offenses in the 5th Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico:  residential burglary and tampering with evidence in Oct. 2001 and battery against a household member in Oct. 2003.

Court filings reflect that the federal charges against Harkness arose out of a domestic violence incident on Jan. 13, 2013.  On that day, Roswell Police Department officers responded to a domestic violence call from Harkness’s wife who reported that Harkness hit her and pointed a firearm at her.  When the officers executed a search warrant at the Harkness residence in Roswell, they found a .22 caliber rifle, two loaded pistols and ammunition.

In June 2013, Harkness pled guilty to a felony information charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and admitted that he unlawfully possessed the rifle and two pistols on Jan. 13, 2013, in Chaves County, N.M. 

            This case was investigated by the Roswell office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Roswell Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.

ALBUQUERQUE – Ronald Martinez, 40, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Borrego Pass, N.M., entered guilty pleas this afternoon to two aggravated child sex abuse charges.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Martinez will be sentenced to 42 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  Martinez will be required to register as a sex offender after he completes his prison sentence.

Martinez was arrested in April 2013, on an indictment charging him with two counts of aggravated sexual abuse and two counts of abusive sexual contact.  According to the indictment, between 1996 and 2002, Martinez aided and abetted sexual contact and abuse with two child victims who had not attained the age of 12 years on the Navajo Indian Reservation.

Today, Martinez pleaded guilty to the two aggravated child sexual abuse charges.  According to Martinez’s plea agreement, in Sept. 2011, a 17-year-old reported being sexually abused by Martinez when the victim was five or six years old.  The victim also reported that Martinez also abused another child during that same period in time.  Martinez admitted abusing the two child victims by directing another child to sexually abuse and to sexually assault the two child victims.  Martinez also admitted threatening the two child victims so that they would not reveal the abuse.  Martinez also admitted that the child who abused the child victims did so after being threatened by Martinez.

Martinez has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Gallup office of the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine Y. Ramirez.  The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

ALBUQUERQUE – Eric Lee Crabb, 42, of Carlsbad, N.M., was sentenced this morning in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to ten years in prison followed by five years of supervised release for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction.   The sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit of the DEA’s El Paso Division, and Commander Carroll Caudill of the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force.

Crabb was arrested on Jan. 14, 2013, on a federal criminal complaint alleging methamphetamine trafficking charges.  He has been in federal custody since that time.  According to the complaint, Crabb was arrested outside a Carlsbad motel on Dec. 27, 2012, for violating the conditions of his supervised release.  Officers found that Crabb was in possession of methamphetamine when they searched him following his arrest.  Officers found additional methamphetamine when they searched Crabb’s motel room and vehicle.

On April 11, 2013, Crabb entered a guilty plea to a felony information charging him possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.  In entering his guilty plea, Crabb admitted giving officers permission to search his motel room and vehicle on Dec. 27, 2012.  Crabb also admitted that the 136.16 grams of pure methamphetamine seized by the officers during those searches belonged to him and that he intended to distribute the drugs.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA and the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Renee L. Camacho of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.

The Pecos Valley Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office, Carlsbad Police Department and Artesia Police Department and is part of the HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force.  The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988.  HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.

ALBUQUERQUE – Noah John Carney, 19, of Phoenix, Ariz., made his initial appearance in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., on a criminal complaint charging him with enticing a minor to engage in explicit conduct and attempting to induce a minor to produce child pornography.

According to the criminal complaint, in Aug. 2013, a 13-year-old child (child victim) began “chatting” with Carney on her cellular telephone after meeting him through an Internet game.  Carney allegedly told the child victim that he was a 19-year-old man and learned that the child victim was 13-years-old.  Over the next two weeks, Carney allegedly asked the child victim to send him naked photos of herself.  Carney also allegedly emailed a nude photo of himself to the child victim.  The complaint further alleges that Carney instructed the child victim on how to access and view pornography on the Internet.  Carney also allegedly inquired about meeting the child victim at hotels near her home for the purpose of engaging in sexual conduct.

According to the complaint, the FBI performed a search of the child victim’s cellular telephone and Kindle device, and found Carney’s nude photo and some of the “chats” between Carney and the child victim.  In mid-Sept. 2013, the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) joined the FBI’s investigation and an APD officer assumed the child victim’s on-line identity and began communicating with Carney.  During an Oct. 3, 2013 “chat,” Carney allegedly asked the officer who was posing as the child victim for a sexually explicit photo, and on the following day, Carney allegedly sent the officer a video of an adult engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Carney was arrested in Phoenix by the FBI on Oct. 24, 2013, and was transferred to Las Cruces yesterday.   If convicted on the charges in the complaint, Carney faces a federal prison sentence of not less than 25 years and not more than 50 years.  If convicted, Carney also would be required to register as a sex offender.  Carney faces enhanced penalties because he previously was convicted of a sex-related offense.  Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations and criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the FBI and APD, and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Wright of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.  The case was filed as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

ALBUQUERQUE – Crystal Torres, 27, pleaded guilty this morning to an assault with a dangerous weapon charge under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. 

Torres, a member and resident of Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, was arrested on Feb. 14, 2013, on an indictment charging her with (1) assaulting a woman with a hammer, and (2) assaulting a man with a knife.  According to the indictment, both offenses occurred on Jan. 22, 2012, on Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo lands.  Court filings reflect that the victim of the second assault was an officer of the Ohkay Owingeh Tribal Police Department.  

This morning, Torres pled guilty to the second count of the indictment charging her with assault with a dangerous weapon, a knife.  According to Torres’s plea agreement, on Jan. 22, 2012, tribal officers were dispatched to Torres’s residence on Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo.  When the officers arrived, they observed Torres running towards a road and into traffic.  When the victim attempted to catch Torres to get her out of the lane of traffic after three vehicles nearly struck her, Torres pulled out a hunting knife and advanced toward the victim, ignoring the victim’s commands that she drop the knife.   

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Torres faces a sentence of 24 months in federal prison but retains the right to request a lower sentence.  Torres remains on conditions of release pending her sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Northern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine Y. Ramirez.

ALBUQUERQUE – Edwin Cheromiah, 28, pleaded guilty this morning to assaulting his intimate partner under a plea agreement that requires him to serve a 72-month federal prison sentence.  Cheromiah’s guilty plea was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, DuWayne W. Honahni, Sr., Special Agent in Charge of District IV of BIA’s Office of Justice Services, and Police Chief Vincent M. Mariano of the Acoma Tribal Police Department.

Cheromiah, a member and resident of Laguna Pueblo, was arrested on Sept. 12, 2013, on an indictment charging him with assault resulting in serious bodily injury; assault with a dangerous weapon; and possessing and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence. 

This morning, Cheromiah pled guilty to a two-count felony information charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon and assault of an intimate partner by strangling and suffocation.  In entering his guilty plea, Cheromiah admitted that on Dec. 27, 2010, he assaulted his intimate partner, an Acoma Pueblo woman, by placing a rifle into the mouth of the victim and threatening to kill her.  He further admitted assaulting the victim by strangling her and attempting to suffocate her.

Cheromiah has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.  The indictment against Cheromiah will be dismissed after sentence is imposed.

This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Acoma Tribal Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle T. Nayback.

This case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project in the District of New Mexico which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women under a grant administered by the Pueblo of Laguna.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.

ALBUQUERQUE – Georges Marius Hyatt, 47, of Moriarty, N.M., was sentenced earlier today to 14 years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his bank robbery conviction and for violating the terms of his supervised release on prior convictions.  Hyatt also was ordered to pay restitution to the banks that were the victims of his criminal conduct.

Hyatt was arrested on July 18, 2012 on a criminal complaint charging him with robbing the New Mexico Federal Credit Union branch at 6501 Indian School Road NE in Albuquerque on July 16, 2012.  According to the criminal complaint, Hyatt was identified as the bank robber by an official with the U.S. Probation Officer who saw photographs taken by the Credit Union’s surveillance cameras in the media.  The official notified the FBI that a warrant had been issued for Hyatt’s arrest for violating the conditions of his supervised release.  Hyatt was arrested after the victim bank teller positively identified him as the bank robber.

On March 23, 2013, Hyatt pled guilty to a four-count felony information charging him with (1) robbing the Credit Union on July 16, 2012; (2) robbing the Bank of the West branch located at 5401 Gibson Blvd. SE in Albuquerque on July 17, 2012; (3) possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence; and (4) being a felon in possession of a firearm.   In entering his guilty plea, Hyatt admitted that he previously had been convicted on bank robbery charges in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.

            This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jon K. Stanford.

ALBUQUERQUE – Joshua Waconda, 21, a member and resident of Laguna Pueblo, entered a guilty plea this morning to an indictment charging him with sexual abuse of a minor under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. 

Waconda was arrested in Nov. 2012, on an indictment charging him with engaging in a sexual act with a child under the age of 16 years in Aug. 2011, on Laguna Pueblo lands.  During today’s proceedings, Waconda pleaded guilty to the indictment.

At sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled, Waconda faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  Waconda will be required to register as a sex offender after he completes his prison sentence.

This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Pueblo of Laguna Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle T. Nayback. 

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

ALBUQUERQUE – Thomas Benally, 53, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Gallup, N.M., was sentenced to ten years in federal prison followed by two years of supervised release for his second degree murder conviction.  Benally’s co-defendant, Luke Spencer, 48, a Navajo man who also resides in Gallup, was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison followed by two years of supervised release for his involuntary manslaughter conviction.   The two men were ordered to pay $3,442.34 in restitution to cover funeral costs for the victim of their crimes.

Benally and Spencer were indicted in March 2012 in an indictment charging Benally with second degree murder and Spencer with aiding and abetting second degree murder.  According to the indictment, Benally, aided by Spencer, killed a man while driving under the influence of alcohol on the Navajo Indian Reservation between Oct. 1, 2010 and Oct. 2, 2010.  

In June 2013, Benally entered a guilty plea to a second degree murder charge and admitted that on the night of Oct. 1, 2010 or the early hours of Oct. 2, 2010, he drove Spencer’s truck while severely intoxicated.  He further admitted that, while backing up, he ran over a 71-year-old Navajo man.  Benally also admitted that he and Spencer, who was in the passenger’s seat, drove away in the truck without making any effort to check on the victim’s condition or calling the authorities to report the accident.  The victim died of injuries he sustained and his remains were found by a passerby on Oct. 7, 2010. 

In May 2013, Spencer pleaded guilty to a felony information charging him with involuntary manslaughter and admitted that he permitted Benally to drive his truck while intoxicated. 

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer M. Rozzoni and Jack E. Burkhead based on an investigation by the Gallup office of the FBI and the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.

ALBUQUERQUE – Reyna Carizoza, 51, a Mexican national illegally in the United States, was sentenced this morning to 97 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release for her methamphetamine trafficking conviction.  Carizoza will be deported after she completes her prison sentence.

Carizoza was arrested on a criminal complaint in April 2013, after law enforcement officers found methamphetamine in her vehicle following a traffic stop.  She subsequently was indicted and charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.

Court records reflect that the FBI initiated an investigation into Carizoza in April 2013, after an informant identified her as an Albuquerque-area drug trafficker.  On April 26, 2013, the FBI directed the informant to make several recorded telephone calls to Carizoza during which the informant negotiated to buy four ounces of methamphetamine from Carizoza.  Thereafter, law enforcement officers executed a traffic stop of Carizoza’s vehicle.  After a narcotics canine “alerted” to the passenger side of the vehicle, officers found a bag containing approximately 64.7 grams of methamphetamine hidden in a toy that was in the vehicle.  Carizoza was arrested and has been in federal custody since that time.

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Albuquerque Cross Border Drug Violence Hybrid Squad and the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Holland S. Kastrin and Lynn W.Y. Wang.

ALBUQUERQUE – Perfinna King, 34, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Ojo Amarillo, N.M., pleaded guilty to using a firearm during a crime of violence.  Under the terms of her plea agreement, King will be sentenced to six years in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

The guilty plea was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Carol K.O. Lee of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI, and Director John Billison of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.

King was arrested in April 2012, based on a criminal complaint charging her with assaulting her domestic partner, another Navajo woman, with a knife and a pistol on April 6, 2012.  King subsequently was indicted and charged with assault with a dangerous weapon, assault resulting in serious bodily injury, and using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence.  Prosecution of this case was delayed by competency proceedings.

According to court filings, in the early hours of April 6, 2012, King had an argument with the victim during which King stabbed the victim in the leg in a residence located in the Navajo Indian Reservation.  Although the victim tried to get away from King by hiding in a bathroom, King dragged the victim out of the bathroom and stabbed her again.  Thereafter, King shot the victim in the leg as the victim ran out of the residence in an effort to get away from King.  The victim was treated for multiple stab wounds and a gunshot wound on her leg.

During today’s proceedings, King entered a guilty plea to Count 3 of the indictment and admitted using a firearm during an assault she committed on April 6, 2012.  King has been in federal custody and remains detained pending her sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Presiliano A. Torrez.

The case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women, and seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.

ALBUQUERQUE – Nelson Begay, 32, of Albuquerque, N.M., was arrested this afternoon on a criminal complaint charging him with receiving and possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  Shortly before his arrest, Begay resigned from his position as an officer of the Albuquerque Police Department.  Begay is scheduled to make his initial appearance in federal court tomorrow morning.

The arrest was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Dennis A. Ulrich, II, of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in El Paso, Texas, and New Mexico Attorney General Gary K. King.

According to the criminal complaint, in Sept. 2013, a special agent with the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office (NMAGO) identified an IP address that was being used share files containing child pornography while conducting an investigation targeting those who share child pornography on peer-to-peer file sharing networks.  Subsequent investigation revealed that the IP address was subscribed to Begay at a residential address in northeast Albuquerque.

The criminal complaint states that on Nov. 7, 2013, HSI and other agencies participating in the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force executed a federal search warrant at Begay’s residence and seized computers and computer-related media.  A preliminary forensic examination of a laptop computer taken from a bedroom allegedly used by Begay recovered more than 30 images consistent with child pornography.     
           
If convicted of the charges in the criminal complaint, Begay faces a federal prison term of not less than five years and not more than 20 years.  If convicted, Begay also would be required to register as a sex offender.  Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations and criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

HSI Special Agent in Charge Dennis A. Ulrich, II, expressed his appreciation to Chief Allen Banks of the Albuquerque Police Department for the Department’s cooperation in the investigation of this case.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of HSI and the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacob A. Wishard as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

The Operation also was brought as a part of the New Mexico ICAC Task Force’s mission, which is to locate, track, and capture Internet child sexual predators and Internet child pornographers in New Mexico.  There are 64 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies associated with the ICAC Task Force, which is funded by a grant administered by the NMAGO.  Anyone with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse is encouraged to contact federal or local law enforcement.

• Indictment

ALBUQUERQUE – Lonnie Dean, 48, of Belen, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to 20 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for his conviction on methamphetamine trafficking and assault on a federal officer charges.  Dean’s sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit of the El Paso Division of the DEA, and Chief Roy E. Melnick of the Los Lunas Police Department.

Dean was one of twelve individuals from Valencia and Socorro Counties charged with federal methamphetamine trafficking charges in May and June 2011, following a 16-month investigation led by the DEA and the Los Lunas Police Department.  The investigation, code-named “Vanilla Sky,” was pursued under the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, a nationwide initiative that combines the resources and unique expertise of federal agencies, along with their local counterparts, in a coordinated attack against major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.
                                               
According to court filings, Dean was part of a large scale methamphetamine trafficking organization that operated in Valencia County.  Between March 2010 and May 2011, members of the organization conspired to sell ounce quantities of methamphetamine to undercover DEA agents on at least ten separate occasions.  They sold more than a pound of methamphetamine to the undercover DEA agents during a 14-month period.

On April 2, 2013, Dean pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, and assaulting a federal officer with a dangerous weapon.  In entering his guilty plea, Dean admitted conspiring with others to distribute methamphetamine in Los Lunas and Belen, and assaulting a federal officer as he attempted to avoid arrest. 

More specifically, Dean admitted that on May 26, 2011, he drove to a gas station in Belen for the purpose of selling methamphetamine to another person.  As Dean was talking to his customer, DEA agents approached Dean and attempted to arrest him.  One DEA agent, who had blocked Dean’s car from the front, exited his car and was moving on foot to a better tactical position with his gun and badge drawn, while another DEA agent parked his vehicle behind Dean’s car to block Dean in.  Dean admitted that, instead of surrendering, he put his car into reverse and hit the DEA agent’s car causing it to go backward.  Dean then put his car into drive and drove forward, missing the DEA agent only because the agent jumped to the side to avoid being struck.  Less than a minute later, Dean drove into a road and entered an intersection where he struck a car driven by Roberta Torres, a 40-year-old resident of Belen, who died as a result of the injuries she sustained in the crash.

Dean faces several state charges, including a vehicular homicide charge, relating to Ms. Torres’ death in the 13th Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico.  Dean has entered a not guilty plea to the state charges.

Seven other defendants have entered guilty pleas in federal cases filed as a result of Operation Vanilla Sky.  Three defendants have pleaded not guilty and are scheduled for trial on Nov. 18, 2013.  The remaining defendant, Arturo Acosta-Astorga, has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.  The charges against the defendants pending trial and the fugitive are merely accusations and they are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. 

This case was investigated by the DEA and the Los Lunas Police Department and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicholas J. Ganjei and Joel R. Meyers.

ALBUQUERQUE – Tayah Edwards, 40, pleaded guilty this morning to a felony information charging him with assault resulting in serious bodily injury and domestic assault by a habitual offender.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Edwards will be sentenced to 70 months in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

The guilty plea was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Carol K.O. Lee of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI, and Director John Billison of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.

Edwards, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Cudei, N.M., was arrested in Aug. 2013, based on a criminal complaint alleging that he assaulted his domestic partner with dangerous weapons, including a stick, a knife and a rock.  According to court filings, the assault occurred at a location within the Navajo Indian Reservation on Aug. 20, 2013.  The victim, who was pregnant, sustained numerous injuries, including a compound fracture to her left leg, a large scalp laceration and multiple contusions, as a result of the assault.   

This morning, Edwards pled guilty to assaulting his intimate partner by striking her in the head and face numerous times and hitting her repeatedly with a stick and a rock.  In his plea agreement, Edwards acknowledged that the victim, who was 35 weeks pregnant with the couple’s child at the time of the assault, sustained serious injuries as a result of the assault.  Edwards also admitted that he previously has been convicted on at least two occasions for assaulting his spouse or intimate partner in Utah state courts.

Edwards has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.  The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney David Adams pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women, and seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.

ALBUQUERQUE – Derek M. Schwartzrock, 35, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced this morning to 97 months in federal prison followed by a lifetime of supervised release for his child pornography conviction.  Schwartzrock will be required to register as a sex offender after he completes his prison sentence. 

Schwartzrock’s sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Dennis A. Ulrich, II, of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in El Paso, Texas, and Chief Pete N. Kassetas of the New Mexico State Police (NMSP).

Schwartzrock was arrested by HSI and the NMSP on April 3, 2013, on a criminal complaint alleging that he received and possessed child pornography in Bernalillo County, N.M.  At the time, Schwartzrock was a children’s minister in an Albuquerque-area church.  He has been in federal custody since his arrest.  On April 24, 2013, Schwartzrock was indicted and charged with three counts of receipt of child pornography and two counts of possession of child pornography.

On July 9, 2013, Schwartzrock entered a guilty plea to Count 2 of the indictment charging him with receipt of child pornography.  Schwartzrock acknowledged that HSI and NMSP executed a search warrant at his residence on April 3, 2013 and seized computers and computer-related media.  The search warrant was issued based on an undercover investigation by HSI in Philadelphia that began in Oct. 2012, and targeted individuals who used a photo-sharing website to possess, receive and distribute child pornography.  HSI in Albuquerque began investigating Schwartzrock in mid-March 2013 after HSI in Philadelphia determined that an individual in Albuquerque was accessing the targeted website and learned that Schwartzrock was the subscriber for the IP Address that allegedly was used to download sexually explicit images of children.

Schwartzrock admitted voluntarily participating in a recorded interview on April 3, 2013.  During the interview, he admitted that he began looking for images of naked boys, with a preference for elementary school aged children, several months earlier and that he downloaded child pornography images from the Internet.  Schwartzrock also acknowledged that a forensic preview of his computers and computer-related media have uncovered over 12,000 images consistent with child pornography and child erotica.
“Child pornography offenses are terrible crimes that involve the sexual abuse and exploitation of the most innocent members of our communities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough.  “It is particularly distressing when those who work with children commit these crimes.  Thanks to the vigilance of our law enforcement partners, Derek Schwartzrock will no longer be around children but instead will be going to federal prison.”

“It is always disturbing to see a person who through their employment has been entrusted with our children is found guilty of these types of charges,” said NMSP Chief Kassetas.  “The New Mexico State Police is fully committed to investigating those who would participate in the exploitation of our children through these types of images.  This case is another example of how Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and New Mexico State Police in cooperation with the United State Attorney’s Office are leveraging their resources to protect our children.  Though I take great pride in NMSP’s involvement in this case, the citizens of New Mexico should understand that there is much more work to be done in combating the exploitation of children through the internet and NMSP is committed to continue these efforts.”

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of HSI, the NMSP and the New Mexico Regional Forensic Lab.  It was prosecuted by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlyn E. Rees and Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa A. Lizarraga as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

The Operation also was brought as a part of the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force’s mission, which is to locate, track, and capture Internet child sexual predators and Internet child pornographers in New Mexico.  There are 64 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies associated with the ICAC Task Force, which is funded by a grant administered by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office.  Anyone with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse is encouraged to contact federal or local law enforcement.

ALBUQUERQUE – Max R. Tafoya, 63, the owner of an Albuquerque-area construction company, pleaded guilty this morning to defrauding a federal program that sets aside federal contracts for businesses owned by service-disabled veterans.  Tafoya's son-in-law, Tyler Cole, 41, of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, N.M., also pleaded guilty to participating in the fraudulent scheme.  The guilty pleas were entered under plea agreements that require a 57 month prison sentence for Tafoya and a 37 month prison sentence for Cole.  The court will determine whether Tafoya and Cole will be required to pay restitution and fines or forfeit assets derived from their criminal activity.

Tafoya and Cole were charged in Feb. 2012, in an indictment alleging that the two men obtained almost $11 million in federal contracts by falsely claiming that Tafoya’s company, M.R. Tafoya Construction, Incorporated (Tafoya Construction), was qualified to participate in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) Program.  A superseding indictment filed in March 2013, added charges of witness tampering and obstruction of justice against Tafoya.

The SDVOSB Program was established pursuant to the Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act of 1999, to achieve a government-wide goal to increase the number of government contracts awarded to small businesses owned and operated by service-disabled veterans.  The Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 gave SDVOSBs the highest priority in contracting preferences for VA contracts awarded to small businesses.  A small business must be both owned and controlled by one or more service-disabled veterans to qualify as an SDVOSB.  Generally, a small business is owned and controlled by a service-disabled veteran when the veteran directly owns at least 51% of the business, holds the highest officer position in the business, and manages and administers the business’s day-to-day operations.

Today, Tafoya and Cole each entered guilty pleas to Counts 1 and 2 of the superseding indictment charging them with conspiracy and committing a major fraud against the United States.

In his plea agreement, Tafoya admitted that between 2009 and 2010, Tafoya Construction was awarded five contracts valued at an aggregate amount of $10,984,189 that required the company to hold SDVOSB status.  During that period, Tafoya, a veteran without any service-connected disability, owned 100% of Tafoya Construction stock.  Tafoya admitted that he obtained the lucrative contracts by paying his step-brother Andrew Castillo, a service-disabled veteran who works and resides in Florida, a $600 weekly fee to allow Tafoya Construction to use Castillo’s name and service-disabled status in its bids for SDVOSB contracts.  Tafoya acknowledged asking Cole to complete certifications stating that Tafoya Construction was a SDVOSB and submit them to the VA so that Tafoya Construction could obtain SDVOSB contracts.  Tafoya also admitted that he drew up a number of false documents designed to create the appearance that Castillo was the majority owner and controller of Tafoya Construction, when in fact he did not own or operate the company, and that Cole forged Castillo’s signature on the documents.

According to Tafoya’s plea agreement, in Feb. 2011, Tafoya lied to a VA investigator to support the fraudulent claim that Tafoya Construction was a SDVOSB.  Tafoya admitted making the following false statements to the investigator:  (1) that Castillo paid $100,000 to purchase 51% of Tafoya Construction; (2) that Castillo worked in Tafoya Construction’s Albuquerque office; (3) that Castillo was working at a VA construction site in Santa Fe that day; and (4) that Castillo personally signed the VA contracts and bonding paperwork on the SDVOSB contracts awarded to Tafoya Construction.   Tafoya also admitted traveling to Florida later in Feb. 2011, to meet with Castillo for the purpose of creating fraudulent documents in an attempt to cover up their fraudulent scheme.  Tafoya subsequently submitted these fraudulent documents to a federal grand jury in July 2011.

In his plea agreement, Cole admitted serving as manager of Tafoya Construction from 2008 to 2011, and participating in Tafoya’s illegal scheme to defraud the United States by falsely claiming that Tafoya Construction was a SDVOSB.  Cole admitted to filling out and submitting certifications to the VA that falsely claimed that Tafoya Construction was owned by Castillo, a service-disabled veteran.  Cole further admitted forging Castillo’s signature on bids and other paper work submitted to the VA and on documents created to make it appear that Castillo was the 51% owner of Tafoya Construction.

As a result of Tafoya’s and Cole’s fraudulent scheme, from 2009 to 2010, the VA awarded Tafoya Construction five contracts in the aggregate amount of $10,984,189 for work at the Fort Bliss National Cemetery, the Santa Fe National Cemetery, the Fort Logan National Cemetery, and the Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.

Tafoya and Cole remain on conditions of release pending their sentencing hearings, which have yet to be scheduled.

Castillo entered a guilty plea in Oct. 2011, to a conspiracy charge.  He remains on conditions of release pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough said, “Contracts under the SDVOSB Program are supposed to go to small businesses that are actually owned by service-disabled veterans, and not to imposters who break the rules and scheme to beat the system.  This prosecution is part of a nationwide effort to protect service-disabled veterans who own small businesses by tightening controls to prevent fraud and abuse.  Today, Max Tafoya and Tyler Cole are being held accountable for abusing a program that seeks to fulfill our moral obligation to provide disabled veterans with benefits designed to ease the losses and disadvantages they have incurred as a consequence of disabilities they sustained while serving our country.”

The case was investigated by the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys C. Paige Messec and Tara C. Neda.

ALBUQUERQUE – A federal grand jury in Albuquerque, N.M., has returned a one-count indictment charging former Belen Police Department Detective John Lytle with unlawfully assaulting a victim identified in the indictment as “R.A.,” during an investigative stop and arrest on March 15, 2012. 

Lytle is charged with violating R.A.’s right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure by a law enforcement officer, which includes the right to be free from the use of excessive force.  The indictment alleges that Lytle unlawfully assaulted R.A. by striking R.A. while R.A. was in handcuffs.  The indictment also alleges that Lytle’s actions resulted in bodily injury to R.A.

Lytle faces a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for the civil rights violation.
  
An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the Albuquerque Division of the FBI.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico Mark T. Baker and Trial Attorney Julia Gegenheimer of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.

• Indictment
  

ALBUQUERQUE – Donovan F. Muskett, 21, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Navajo, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Muskett will be sentenced to seven years in federal prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  Muskett’s guilty plea was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough and Director John Billison of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.

Muskett was arrested on March 1, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon, using a firearm during a crime of violence and aggravated burglary.  He subsequently was indicted and charged with committing the following offenses in Navajo, N.M., on Feb. 10, 2013:  (1) assault with a dangerous weapon; (2) aggravated burglary; (3) brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence; and (4) negligent child abuse.

According to court records, on Feb. 10, 2013, Muskett forced his way at gunpoint into a Navajo residence occupied by a woman and a young child.  Muskett pointed his firearm at the adult victim, demanded money from her, and threatened to shoot her.  While Muskett was rummaging in the kitchen, the victim managed to push Muskett out of the residence and lock him out.  After ensuring the child victim’s safety, the adult victim called the police and reported the break-in and assault.  Officers were able to locate Muskett by following footsteps in the snow.  Muskett was arrested on tribal charges and remained in tribal custody until his arrest on federal charges.

During this morning’s proceedings, Muskett entered a guilty plea to Count 3 of a superseding indictment charging him with brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.   In his plea agreement, Muskett admitted brandishing a .22 caliber revolver while committing a crime of violence.  More specifically, Muskett admitted pointing the firearm at the adult victim with the intention of committing the felony offenses of assault with a dangerous weapon and aggravated battery.

Muskett was remanded into federal custody after entering his guilty plea and will remain detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Window Rock office of the Navajo Division of Public Safety with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Novaline D. Wilson and Kyle T. Nayback.

ALBUQUERQUE – A federal grand jury has indicted three men from Rio Arriba County, N.M., on heroin trafficking charges. 

The five-count indictment, which was filed on Oct. 30, 2013, charges Jose Enrique Ontiveros-Soto, 33, a Mexican national unlawfully in the United States and residing in Arroyo Seco, N.M., Jorge Acosta-Sanchez, 20, of Espanola, N.M., and Guadalupe Alcantar, 19, of Medanales, N.M., with participating in a conspiracy to distribute heroin in Rio Arriba County between Aug. 22, 2013 and Sept. 25, 2013.

The indictment also includes four substantive heroin distribution offenses.  Count 2 charges Acosta-Sanchez and Alcantar with distributing heroin on Aug. 22, 2013.  Count 3 charges Ontiveros-Soto and Alcantar with distributing heroin on Aug. 28, 2013.  Count 4 charges Ontiveros-Soto and Acosta-Sanchez with distributing heroin on Sept. 11, 2013, and Count 5 charges Ontiverso-Soto only with distributing heroin on Sept. 25, 2013.

Ontiveros-Soto and Alcantar were arrested on Nov. 1, 2013, and made their initial appearances in federal court yesterday.  This morning, both men were arraigned on the indictment and ordered detained pending trial.  Acosta-Sanchez was arrested yesterday and made his initial appearance in federal court this morning.  He remains in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for tomorrow.

If convicted on the charges in the indictment, the defendants each face a prison term of not less than five years and not more than 40 years.  Indictments are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until convicted beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the DEA, the New Mexico State Police and the HIDTA Region III Multi-Jurisdictional Task Force, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jon K. Stanford.

The HIDTA Region III Multi-Jurisdictional Task Force (Region III) is comprised of officers from the New Mexico State Police, Santa Fe Police Department and the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office.  Region III was first funded in 1999 to address the heroin problem in Rio Arriba and Santa Fe Counties, an area that leads the nation in per capita heroin-related overdose deaths.  It is an investigative/enforcement initiative that targets and dismantles poly-drug (primarily heroin and cocaine) trafficking organizations.  Region III is part of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program which was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988.  HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.

ALBUQUERQUE – Victor Tyler, 44, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to an assault with a dangerous weapon charge under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Tyler was arrested on Aug. 20, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon.  Tyler subsequently was indicted and charged with that same charge and also with assaulting a federal officer with a dangerous weapon and inflicting bodily injury.

This morning, Tyler pleaded guilty to Count 1 of the indictment charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon.  In his plea agreement, Tyler admitted that on Aug. 16, 2013, officers of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety came to his Shiprock residence in response to his wife’s call for assistance.  At the time, Tyler had armed himself with two kitchen knives and locked himself into a bedroom.  After two uniformed officers entered the residence, Tyler came out of the bedroom with the knives, ignored the officers’ repeated instructions that he drop the knives, and threw one of the knives at one of the officers.  The knife struck the officer in the foot, causing injury to her foot.

Tyler has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.  At sentencing, Tyler faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison.

This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark T. Baker.

ALBUQUERQUE –Francisco Burciaga, 43, of El Paso, Texas, was sentenced this morning to 20 years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release for his heroin trafficking conviction, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Joseph M. Arabit, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s El Paso Division, Chief Pete N. Kassetas of the New Mexico State Police and Chief Terry Sisneros of the Raton Police Department.

Burciaga was arrested in June 2008, after officers found 32 pounds of heroin secreted in his vehicle during a routine traffic stop in Colfax County, N.M.  In July 2008, he was indicted and charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute.  A trial in Nov. 2010 ended in a mistrial and proceedings in the case were stayed during the pendency of an interlocutory appeal.  The retrial of the case concluded on May 31, 2013, when the jury returned a guilty verdict against Burciaga on the sole count of the indictment.

According to the evidence at trial, on June 24, 2008, a New Mexico Motor Transportation Police officer executed a routine traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Burciaga on Interstate 25 just south of Raton, N.M.  When the officer approached Burciaga, he provided a Texas driver’s license and documents reflecting that the vehicle was registered to him in Phoenix, Ariz., on June 23, 2008, and insured by him on that same day.  After the officer explained the traffic violation he observed, Burciaga admitted the violation and agreed to pay the fine.

While talking with Burciaga, the officer noticed a strong chemical odor coming from the vehicle and an air freshener hanging from the vehicle’s rear-view mirror, which, together with the vehicle’s recent registration, triggered the officer’s suspicions.  Accordingly, the officer asked Burciaga if he had anything illegal in the vehicle.  Burciaga responded by opening the vehicle’s hatchback and saying, “Wanna take a look.”  Shortly thereafter, a New Mexico State Police Officer arrived to assist and noticed fresh tool marks and spray paint on the underside of the vehicle and its back bumper area.  The officers then had a narcotics dog inspect the vehicle and the dog reacted to the back bumper area of the vehicle. 

When the officers removed the back bumper from Burciaga’s vehicle, they found a hidden compartment containing 24 sealed packages containing a white powdery substance.  Subsequent laboratory analysis revealed that the packages contained 14.4 kilograms (32 pounds) of heroin that was 72% pure.  The Chief of the Indications and Warnings Section of DEA’s Intelligence Division in Washington, D.C., who testified as an expert, told the jury that the heroin seized from Burciaga was one of the top ten DEA heroin seizures in the United States in 2008 in terms of weight.  He also testified that, in Chicago, Ill., where Burciaga intended to deliver the heroin, the conservative retail, or street, value of the heroin in 2008 was at least $2,900,000.

Burciaga faced enhanced penalties in this case because he previously was convicted of a felony drug trafficking crime in a Texas state court in 1996. 

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the DEA, the New Mexico Motor Transportation Police, the New Mexico State Police and the Raton Police Department, with assistance from the New Mexico State Police, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jon K. Stanford and C. Paige Messec.

ALBUQUERQUE – Sampson Antonio, Jr., 25, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Crownpoint, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to 30 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his involuntary manslaughter conviction.  Antonio also was ordered to pay $4,077.05 in restitution to cover funeral costs for the victim.

Antonio was arrested in July 2012, on a criminal complaint charging him with involuntary manslaughter in connection with the death of a 19-year-old Navajo woman in Mariano Lake, N.M., on April 21, 2012.  Antonio subsequently was indicted and charged with driving a vehicle while intoxicated and running over the victim and causing her death. 
           
On April 30, 2013, Antonio pled guilty to the indictment and admitted killing the victim on April 21, 2012, while driving under the influence of alcohol and driving recklessly.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kyle T. Nayback and David M. Adams, and was investigated by the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.

ALBUQUEQUE – Louie Villegas, 49, of Palm Springs, Calif., was sentenced this afternoon to ten years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for his heroin trafficking conviction.

Villegas was arrested on April 18, 2013, at the Greyhound Bus Station in Albuquerque, N.M., after DEA agents found more than a kilogram of heroin concealed in inside the inner soles of his tennis shoes.  He subsequently was indicted and charged with possession of heroin with intent to distribute.

Villegas entered a guilty plea to the indictment on Aug. 5, 2013.  Villegas admitted that, while at the Greyhound bus station in Albuquerque on April 18, 2013, he had a consensual encounter with DEA agents and gave the agents permission to search him and his shoes for contraband.  When Villegas handed his left shoe to the agents, it was abnormally heavy.  Inside the inner sole of both shoes, the agents found approximately 1.3 kilograms of heroin.

This case was investigated by the Interdiction Unit of the Albuquerque office of the DEA and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lynn W.Y. Wang.

ALBUQUERQUE – Dominic Tyrel Holland, 27, of Las Cruces, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to a bank robbery charge and admitted robbing the First Light Federal Credit Union in Las Cruces N.M., on July 31, 2013.  Holland entered his guilty plea without the benefit of a plea agreement.

Holland was arrested on July 31, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging him with robbing the First Light Federal Credit Union in Las Cruces on that day.  He subsequently was indicted on that same charge.  According to the criminal complaint, Holland approached a bank teller and presented a note demanding money.  After obtaining money from the bank teller, Holland left the bank on foot.  After witnesses at the bank identified Holland as the bank robber, officers of the Las Cruces Police Department located Holland at an apartment complex and placed him under arrest. 

Holland has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.  At sentencing, Holland faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a term of supervised release to be determined by the court. 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Luis A. Martinez of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office and was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the FBI and the Las Cruces Police Department.

ALBUQUERQUE – Martin Moreno, 53, of Farmington, N.M., was sentenced today to 15 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for his conviction on drug trafficking and firearms charges.  Moreno also was ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.

Moreno’s sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, 11th Judicial District Attorney Robert P. “Rick” Tedrow, Special Agent in Charge Dennis A. Ulrich, II, of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in El Paso, Texas, and Commander Neil Haws of the Region II Narcotics Task Force.

Moreno was arrested in March 2012, on a federal criminal complaint charging him with drug trafficking offenses.  He subsequently was charged in a seven-count second superseding indictment with possession of methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana with intent to distribute; using and carrying a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and three counts of being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition.  According to court records, Moreno possessed the narcotics, numerous firearms and ammunition on Feb. 27, 2012, in San Juan County, N.M.  At the time, Moreno was prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition because he previously had been convicted of trafficking cocaine in the 11th Judicial District Court for the State of New Mexico in San Juan County.  Moreno was arrested on state charges in Feb. 2012, which were dismissed after the federal charges were filed.

The charges against Moreno arose from evidence seized on Feb. 27, 2012, when the Region II Narcotics Task Force and HSI executed search warrants authorizing searches of Moreno’s residence, two storage lockers and a truck.  They also were based on Moreno’s acknowledgement that he was the owner of the contents of the storage lockers and his truck.  

In July 2013, Moreno entered a guilty plea to all seven counts of the second superseding indictment.  In his plea agreement, Moreno admitted that on Feb., 27, 2012, he possessed approximately 120 grams of methamphetamine, a kilogram of cocaine and a kilogram of marijuana, all of which were stored in a storage locker in Farmington.  He also admitted keeping a stolen pistol and ammunition in the storage locker for the purpose of protecting the drugs.

Moreno also admitted that in a different storage locker, he stored 14 firearms, including a machine gun, shotguns, hunting rifles and semi-automatic rifles.  He acknowledged that as a convicted felon, he was prohibited from owning firearms.

In his plea agreement, Moreno also admitted possessing additional amounts of drugs, including a small amount of methamphetamine and a supply of marijuana, and a pistol at his residence.  Moreno also acknowledged that the $3,000 in cash found in his bedroom and the $66,000 in cash found in his truck were the proceeds of his narcotics trafficking activities.

Moreno’s plea agreement requires that Moreno forfeit the firearms, ammunition and narcotics proceeds seized on Feb. 27, 2012.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of HSI and the Region II Narcotics Task Force.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicholas Jon Ganjei and Samuel A. Hurtado as part of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution.  Under this anti-violence initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible.

ALBUQUERQUE – Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough and Joseph M. Arabit, Special Agent in Charge of DEA’s El Paso Division, announced the indictment of 18 individuals who allegedly participated in a tri-state drug trafficking organization that obtained methamphetamine from Arizona and Texas and distributed the drugs in Otero and Doña Ana Counties, N.M.   

The 43-count indictment, which was filed under seal on Oct. 16, 2013, was unsealed yesterday following a multi-agency law enforcement operation that resulted in the arrest of eight of the 18 defendants, including five residents of Alamogordo, N.M.  Two other defendants were arrested on Oct. 29, 2013 in Arizona and two more are in state custody on unrelated charges. Six defendants have yet to be arrested and are considered fugitives. 

The defendants arrested in New Mexico will make their initial appearances in Las Cruces federal court this morning.  The defendants arrested in Arizona will be transferred to New Mexico and the defendants in state custody will be transferred to federal custody to face the charges in the indictment.

The indictment charges all 18 defendants with conspiracy to distribute quantities of methamphetamine in Otero and Doña Ana Counties between Jan. 2013 and June 2013.  The indictment also includes 14 substantive methamphetamine distribution counts and 28 “phone” counts which allege the use of communication devices to facilitate drug trafficking crimes.

The indictment is the result of an eleven-month multi-agency investigation led by the DEA that was designated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (“OCDETF”) program.  The OCDETF program is a nationwide Department of Justice program that combines the resources and unique expertise of federal agencies, along with their local counterparts, in a coordinated effort to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations.  During the course of the investigation, law enforcement officers seized approximately 3.3 kilograms of methamphetamine and $16,000 in cash.

Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough emphasized the importance of the multi-agency investigation: “Methamphetamine is the drug most often associated with violent crime and property crime in New Mexico. When we attack methamphetamine trafficking in our communities, we reduce the incidence of other crime that goes hand in hand with drug trafficking.  I am proud of being part of an operation that is a significant step in improving the public safety in Otero and Doña Ana Counties.  Together with our law enforcement partners, we will continue our relentless pursuit of meth trafficking rings that operate in our communities throughout New Mexico.”

“With these arrests and seizures, DEA and its federal, state, and local law enforcement partners have dismantled an organization responsible for distributing large quantities of methamphetamine in southern New Mexico.   Methamphetamine destroys the lives of its abusers and threatens the overall health and safety of our communities.  We will continue to work together to target criminal organizations and their assets to ensure that drug traffickers are held responsible for the harm they cause,” said Joseph M. Arabit, Special Agent in Charge of DEA’s El Paso Division. 

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Renee L. Camacho and Sarah M. Davenport of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting the case, which was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA, the Sunland Park Police Department, New Mexico State Police, Las Cruces/Doña Ana County Metro Narcotics Agency, Las Cruces Police Department, Alamogordo Police Department, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives. 

The following law enforcement agencies participated in yesterday’s law enforcement operation:  DEA’s offices in Las Cruces, El Paso, Texas, Phoenix, Ariz., and Tucson, Ariz.; the FBI’s office in Las Cruces; the Las Cruces office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Marshals Service, Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office, Las Cruces Police Department, Las Cruces/Doña Ana County Metro Narcotics Agency, Alamogordo Police Department, and Sunland Park Police Department.

Summary of Indictment

Count 1 of the Indictment charges all eighteen defendants with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.  The maximum penalty for a conviction on this count is imprisonment for not less than ten years or more than life and a $10,000,000 fine.

Counts 2-4, 6-7, 9, 11, 13, 16-17, 20, 29, 32 and 43 of the indictment charge certain defendants with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.  The maximum penalty for a conviction on each of these counts is imprisonment for not more than 20 years and a $1,000,000 fine.

Counts 5, 8, 10, 12, 14-15, 18-19, 21-28, 30-31 and 33-42 of the indictment charge certain defendants with using a communications device (telephone) to facilitate a drug trafficking crime.  The maximum penalty for a conviction on each of these counts is imprisonment for not more than four years and a $250,000 fine.

Charges Against Defendants

Roxann Renee Vasquez, 40, of Duncan, Ariz., is charged in Counts 1, 21, 24 and 39 of the indictment.   Vasquez was arrested on Oct. 29, 2013 in Duncan, Ariz.

Jessie Jesus Marquez, 34, of Las Cruces, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 13, 23, 29-30, 36 and 41 of the indictment.  Marquez has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.

Michelle Darlene Casillas, 36, of Phoenix, Ariz., is charged in Counts 1 and 19 of the indictment.  Casillas was arrested yesterday in Phoenix.

Cornelio Barrera, 40, of Deming, N.M., is charged in Counts 1 and 38-40 of the indictment.  Barrera was arrested on Oct. 29, 2013 in Duncan, Ariz.

Anthony Frank Montoya, 26, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 10 and 15 of the indictment.  Montoya is in state custody on unrelated charges and will be transferred to federal custody.

Demetrio Edwardo Stogden, 33, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 14, 18, 26, and 35 of the indictment.  Stogden is in state custody on unrelated charges and will be transferred to federal custody.

Jessica Marie Gomez, 30, of Phoenix, Ariz., is charged in Counts 1, 42 and 43 of the indictment.  Gomez has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.

Jay T. Black, 44, of Tularosa, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 11, 17, 22 and 32 of the indictment.  Black was arrested yesterday in Tularosa.

Rustan Turner, 49, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 2 and 34 of the indictment.  Turner was arrested yesterday in Alamogordo.

Carlos John Maldonado, 37, of Las Cruces, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 3 and 25 of the indictment.  Maldonado has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.

Cecilia Chavez, 52, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 2, 5 and 33 of the indictment.  Chavez was arrested yesterday in Alamogordo.

John Frank Herrera, 44, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 6, 7 and 17of the indictment.  Herrera was arrested yesterday in Alamogordo.

Michael Paul Lucero, 39, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 4 and 8 of the indictment.  Lucero was arrested yesterday in Alamogordo.

Paul Steven McGranahan, 44, of Las Cruces, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 28, 31 and 37 of the indictment.  McGranahan has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.

Stephan E. Morales, 30, of Las Cruces, N.M., is charged in Counts 1 and 27 of the indictment.  Morales was arrested yesterday in Las Cruces.

Jasmine Lara Robertson, 35, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 2, 9, 12 and 16 of the indictment.  Robertson was arrested yesterday in Alamogordo.

Stephanie Taylor, 26, of Alamogordo, N.M., is charged in Counts 1, 2 and 20 of the indictment.  Taylor has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.

Bret Hampton, 33, of Las Cruces, N.M., is charged in Count 1 of the indictment.  Hampton has yet to be arrested and is considered a fugitive.

• Indictment

ALBUQUERQUE – James Phillip Tafoya, 43, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to seven years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction for using a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.  He also was ordered to pay $930.82 in restitution. 

Tafoya was arrested in Jan. 2013, on a three-count indictment charging him with (1) violating the Hobbs Act by robbing a business involved in interstate commerce, (2) using a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, and (3) theft of medical products.  Count 1 of the indictment alleged that Tafoya robbed an employee of an Albuquerque-area CVS Pharmacy at gunpoint on Nov. 3, 2012, and stole Oxycodone and Oxycontin.  Count 2 alleged that Tafoya used a firearm to perpetuate the robbery, and Count 3 alleged that Tafoya used violence and the threat of violence to unlawfully take pre-retail medical products.

In July 2013, Tafoya pled guilty to Count 2 of the indictment and admitted that on Nov. 3, 2012, he committed armed robbery of the CVS store located at 9640 Menual Blvd NE, in Albuquerque.  Tafoya admitted entering the store, displaying and brandishing a firearm in order to intimidate the clerk, and demanding that the clerk give him Oxycodone and Oxycontin.  He also admitted knowing that CVS is a business engaged in interstate commerce, and that he used a firearm to knowingly and unlawfully take pre-retail medical products through the threat of violence or force.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jon K. Stanford.  The case was brought as part of a law enforcement initiative launched in July 2012, by the FBI’s Violent Crimes and Major Offender Squad and the Albuquerque Police Department’s Armed Robbery Unit that targets suspects implicated in commercial armed robberies.  This initiative is part of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution.  Under the anti-violence initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from our communities for as long as possible.

ALBUQUERQUE – Eric Thomas Valley, 42, was sentenced this morning to 40 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction for domestic assault by a habitual offender.  The sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, DuWayne W. Honahni, Sr., Special Agent in Charge of District IV of BIA’s Office of Justice Services, and Police Chief Vincent M. Mariano of the Acoma Tribal Police Department.

Valley, a member and resident of Acoma Pueblo, was arrested in Oct. 2012, based on a criminal complaint alleging that he assaulted his domestic partner, also a member of Acoma Pueblo, by striking her in the head with a wooden rolling pin.  The victim sustained numerous injuries, including three lacerations to the head that had to be stapled closed, as a result of the assault.  Valley subsequently was charged in a three-count indictment with (1) domestic assault by a habitual offender; (2) assault resulting in serious bodily injury; and (3) assault with a dangerous weapon. 

In April 2013, Valley pleaded guilty to Count 1 of the indictment and admitted assaulting his girlfriend on Oct. 10, 2012, on Acoma Pueblo.  Valley also admitted that he previously has been convicted on domestic violence offenses on two occasions.  Court records reflect that Valley has prior convictions for battery on a household member in Magistrate’s Court in Cibola County, N.M., in June 2005, and battery against a household member in Acoma Tribal Court in May 2009.

This case was investigated by the Laguna/Acoma Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services, and the Acoma Tribal Police Department, and was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney David Adams and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle T. Nayback. 

This case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women, and seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.

ALBUQUERQUE – Mark Anthony Harriman, 45, of Las Cruces, N.M., was sentenced this morning in Las Cruces federal court to 20 years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for his drug trafficking and firearms conviction. 

The sentence was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit of the El Paso Division of the DEA, Special Agent in Charge Bobby Holden of the Las Cruces/Doña Ana County Metro Narcotics Agency and New Mexico State Police Chief Pete N. Kassetas.

Harriman and Agustin Abascal, 27, also of Las Cruces, were arrested in April 2013 based on a criminal complaint charging them with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Doña Ana County, N.M., between Nov. 2012 and March 2013.  According to the complaint, Harriman and Abascal sold quantities of methamphetamine to a New Mexico State Police officer and a DEA informant who were acting in undercover capacities during the five month period.  Both men have been in federal custody since their arrests.

Harriman pled guilty in July 2013 to a two-count felony information charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute and being a felon in possession of a firearm.  In entering his guilty plea, Harriman admitted that between Feb. 26, 2013 and March 14, 2013, he obtained methamphetamine from California and sold it in Las Cruces.  Harriman also admitted selling an ounce of methamphetamine to an informant on Feb. 26, 2013.  He further admitted that he was traveling back from California with two ounces of methamphetamine when he was arrested in this case. 

Harriman also admitted that, when federal agents executed a search warrant at his residence, they seized nine firearms and large amounts of ammunition that belonged to him.  Harriman acknowledged that he was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously was convicted of two felony offenses.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Harriman agreed to forfeit the firearms and more than 1000 rounds of ammunition seized from his residence in addition to $13,940 in cash.

Abascal also entered a guilty plea in July 2013.  He pled guilty to a one-count felony information charging him with distribution of methamphetamine and admitted selling methamphetamine to an undercover officer on five separate occasions between Nov. 1, 2012 and March 7, 2013.  Abascal faces a term of ten years to life in prison when he is sentenced.  His sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA, the Las Cruces/Doña Ana County Metro Narcotics Agency and the New Mexico State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Renee L. Camacho of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.

ALBUQUERQUE – Calvin Tenorio, Sr., 65, a member and resident of Kewa Pueblo, was sentenced this afternoon to 24 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for his child sex abuse conviction.  Tenorio will be required to register as a sex offender when he completes his prison sentence.

Tenorio was arrested on Jan. 10, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging him with abusive sexual contact with a minor and subsequently was indicted on that same charge.  According to the indictment, Tenorio sexually assaulted a child who had not attained the age of 12 years on Nov. 28, 2012, by touching the child’s clothed genitals.

According to court filings, a member of the child’s family reported the sexual assault to Kewa Pueblo officials on Nov. 28, 2012, and the Pueblo officials promptly referred the report to the BIA for investigation.  After preliminary investigation, the BIA arrested Tenorio on tribal charges and referred the matter to the FBI for further investigation.  Tenorio remained in tribal custody until his arrest on federal charges and has been in federal custody since that time.

On April 9, 2013, Tenorio pled guilty to the indictment without the benefit of a plea agreement.  During his plea hearing, Tenorio admitted sexually assaulting a child under 12 years of age in a residence located in Kewa Pueblo.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque and Santa Fe offices of the FBI and the Southern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine Y. Ramirez as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

ALBUQUERQUE – Rosabelle Ben, 58, a member of the Jicarilla Apache Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., pleaded guilty this afternoon to being an accessory to the sexual abuse of a minor.  Under the terms of her plea agreement, Rosabelle Ben will be sentenced to a federal prison term within the range of two to five years followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  Rosabelle Ben will be required to register as a sex offender when she completes her prison sentence.

Rosabelle Ben and co-defendants Herbert Ben, Sr., 63, a member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, and Bruce Hamilton, 77, a non-native resident of Shiprock, were arrested in May 2012, based on a criminal complaint alleging child sex abuse offenses.  All three subsequently were indicted and charged with sexual abuse of a child between the age of 12 and 16 years, and aiding and abetting the sexual abuse of a child.

In her plea agreement, Rosabelle Ben admitted that between Aug. 1, 2010 and Dec. 11, 2011, she made a child between the ages of 12 and 15 available to Hamilton so that Hamilton could engage in a sexual act with the child.  Rosabelle Ben further admitted that Hamilton paid her with money and alcohol for making the child victim available to him.  She further admitted that the offense occurred on the Navajo Indian Reservation.

Herbert Ben, Sr., pled guilty on July 31, 2013, to sexual abuse of a minor and admitted that, on a date between Aug. 2010 and Dec. 2011, he sexually abused a minor at a location within the Navajo Reservation.  Hamilton pled guilty on Aug. 19, 2013, to sexually abusing a minor and admitted sexually abusing a Navajo child between the age of 12 and 15 on a date between Aug. 2010 and Dec. 2011.  Both men admitted committing these crimes on the Navajo Indian Reservation.  At sentencing, each man faces a federal prison term within the range of two to five years followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  Each also will be required to register as a sex offender when he completes his prison sentence.

This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob A. Wishard and Novaline D. Wilson as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

ALBUQUERQUE – Alcario Emilio Provencio, 24, a member and resident of the Mescalero Apache Nation, pleaded guilty on Oct. 28, 2013, in Las Cruces federal court to assaulting a minor in Indian Country.  Under the terms of the plea agreement, Provencio will be sentenced to 36 months of imprisonment followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

Provencio was arrested on April 15, 2013, on a criminal complaint charging him with assault resulting in serious bodily injury.  According to the complaint, Provencio assaulted a 16-month old child who was in his care on Oct. 10, 2012, in a residence located on the Mescalero Apache Reservation.  As a result of the assault, the victim sustained serious injuries including compression fractures of two vertebrae, retinal hemorrhaging, a fractured rib and numerous bruises on the head, face, neck and torso.  Provencio was in tribal custody on tribal charges related to the assault until his arrest on federal charges.

On Friday, Provencio entered a guilty plea to a felony information charging him with assault of a person under the age of 16 resulting in substantial bodily injury.  Provencio admitted assaulting the victim by intentionally striking the child, and acknowledged that the victim sustained substantial bodily injury as a result of the assault.

Provencio has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the FBI and the Mescalero Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron O. Jordan of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.

ALBUQUERQUE – Frederick Gonzales, 43, and his wife Carey Gonzales, 37, both of Albuquerque, N.M., were sentenced this morning for their convictions on federal child pornography charges.  Frederick Gonzales was sentenced to 97 months in federal prison followed by 15 years of supervised release.  Carey Gonzales was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison followed by 20 years of supervised release.  Each also was ordered to pay $500 in restitution to the victim whose image was at issue in the child pornography offenses of conviction.  Both will be required to register as sex offenders after they complete their respective prison sentences.

The sentences imposed on the couple were announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, New Mexico Attorney General Gary K. King, Carol K.O. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI, and Bernalillo County Sheriff Dan Houston.

Frederick and Carey Gonzales were arrested on state child pornography charges on Jan. 11, 2013.  At that time, Frederick Gonzales was the incoming president of Albuquerque’s Young America Football League (YAFL), and Carey Gonzales was employed as a kindergarten teacher’s aide by the Albuquerque Public Schools (APS).  Shortly thereafter, the YAFL removed Frederick Gonzales from his position with the organization and APS fired Carey Gonzales.  On Jan. 18, 2013, the couple was arrested on criminal complaints alleging federal child pornography charges by members of the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force.

Frederick and Carey Gonzales were indicted on Feb. 6, 2013 in a six-count indictment charging Frederick Gonzales with three counts of receipt of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and two counts of possession of visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  The indictment also charged Carey Gonzales with one count of possessing visual depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

The charges against Frederick and Carey Gonzales were the result of an undercover investigation initiated by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office in Sept. 2012, that identified an IP Address subscribed to Frederick Gonzales as one that was used to possess, receive and distribute child pornography.  As a result of the investigation, on Jan. 11, 2013, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at the Gonzales residence and seized computers and computer-related media that contained videos and images consistent with child pornography. 

On May 29, 2013, Frederick Gonzales entered a guilty plea to Count 1 of the indictment charging him with receipt of child pornography.  In his plea agreement, Frederick Gonzales acknowledged that, on Jan. 11, 2013, he voluntarily participated in a recorded interview during which he admitted watching child pornography videos and that he had been downloading child pornography videos using a file-sharing program for approximately six months.  On that same day, Carey Gonzales entered a guilty plea to Count 6 of the indictment charging her with possession of child pornography and admitted watching child pornography videos that her husband downloaded and saved.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlyn E. Rees and was investigated by the following members of the New Mexico ICAC Task Force:  the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the New Mexico Regional Computer Forensic Lab.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

The case also was brought as part of the New Mexico ICAC Task Force’s mission, which is to locate, track, and capture Internet child sexual predators and Internet child pornographers in New Mexico.  There are 64 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies associated with the ICAC Task Force, which is funded by a grant administered by the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office.  Anyone with information relating to suspected child predators and suspected child abuse is encouraged to contact federal or local law enforcement.

ALBUQUERQUE – Trevor Lee Thayer, 42, of Silver City, N.M., pleaded guilty this afternoon in Las Cruces federal court to violating the federal firearms laws by unlawfully possessing a short barreled rifle and unlawfully possessing a silencer. 

Thayer was indicted in Feb. 2013, and was charged with (1) unlawful possession of a short barreled rifle, (2) unlawful possession of a silencer, (3) unlawfully manufacturing a silencer, (4) manufacturing marijuana, and (5) possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  In Aug. 2013, the indictment was superseded to add the additional charge of (6) maintaining premises for the purpose of manufacturing marijuana.  According to the superseding indictment, offenses were committed in Grant County, N.M., in Aug. 2012.

During his plea hearing, Thayer entered guilty pleas to Counts 1 and 2 of the superseding indictment charging him with unlawful possession of a short barreled rifle and unlawful possession of a silencer.  In his plea agreement, Thayer admitted committing these two offenses on Aug. 15, 2012, in Grant County, N.M., by illegally possessing a grey silencer and a weapon, which was made from a Ruger, Model 10/22, .22 caliber rifle and with a barrel length of less than 16 inches, that were not registered to him in the National Registration and Transfer Record.

At sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled, Thayer faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison on each of the two charges.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Thayer is required to forfeit seven firearms and more than 2000 rounds of ammunition.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces offices of the DEA and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with assistance from the New Mexico Motor Transportation Police and the New Mexico State Police.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maria Y. Armijo and Amanda L. Gould of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting the case.

ALBUQUERQUE – Dallas Chase Barth, 22, of Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to a felony information charging Barth, a non-native, with assaulting an Indian with a dangerous weapon on Aug. 28, 2013, in Taos Pueblo.

Barth was arrested on Aug. 29, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon.  According to the criminal complaint, on Aug. 28, 2013, Barth stole a van belonging to a U.S. Postal Service contractor that contained U.S. mail from outside a convenience store in Espanola, N.M., and led officers from several law enforcement agencies on a high speed chase to Taos Pueblo.   Barth continued speeding through Taos Pueblo lands pursued by two tribal police officers in marked police vehicles. 

Barth’s escapade ended when he drove to a dead end, made a U-turn, and began driving at a high rate of speed towards the two tribal officers who were standing by their parked police vehicles.  One of the tribal officers had to jump out of the way in order to avoid being hit by Barth’s van and the other tribal officer, a member of the Turtle Mountain Chippewa Tribe, narrowly escaped injury by moving towards the rear of his police vehicle.  Shortly thereafter, Barth was arrested after crashing the van.

In his plea agreement, Barth admitted leading a high speed chase that began in Espanola and ended in Taos Pueblo while driving recklessly and at high speeds as he attempted to flee from officers from several law enforcement agencies.  Barth further admitted driving towards two tribal officers, including one who is a member of a federally recognized Indian tribe, at a high rate of speed with the intention of causing bodily harm to them and without any justification or excuse.

At sentencing, Barth faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison.  Barth has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. 

This case was investigated by the Santa Fe office of the FBI and the Northern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services with assistance from the Taos Pueblo Department of Public Safety, the New Mexico State Police, Taos County Sheriff’s Office and Rio Arriba Sheriff’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Niki Tapia-Brito.

ALBUQUERQUE – Jason Mooney, 36, a member and resident of Laguna Pueblo, was sentenced this morning to ten years in federal prison followed by ten years of supervised release for his aggravated sexual abuse conviction.  Mooney will be required to register as a sex offender when he completes his prison sentence. 

Mooney’s guilty plea was announced by Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough, DuWayne W. Honahni, Sr., Special Agent in Charge of District IV of BIA’s Office of Justice Services, and Chief Michelle F. Ray of the Pueblo of Laguna Police Department.

Mooney was arrested in June 2008, based on a criminal complaint alleging that he sexually abused a child between the age of 12 and 16 years.  In July 2008, Mooney was indicted on aggravated sexual abuse charges.  Proceedings in the case were delayed by competency proceedings.  Mooney has been in federal custody since his arrest. 

On July 24, 2013, Mooney entered a guilty plea to an aggravated sexual abuse charge.  In his plea agreement, Mooney admitted that he sexually abused a minor child on a date between July 2003 and July 2004.  He further admitted that his unlawful conduct occurred on Laguna Pueblo. 

This case was investigated by the Laguna Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and the Pueblo of Laguna Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacob A. Wishard. 

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

ALBUQUERQUE – Dennis J. Lovato, 29, a member and resident of Kewa Pueblo, pleaded guilty this morning to a second degree murder charge under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Lovato was arrested on April 20, 2011, on a criminal complaint charging him with beating another Kewa Pueblo man to death outside the victim’s residence on April 15, 2011.  He subsequently was indicted and charged with second degree murder. 

This morning, Lovato entered a guilty plea to the indictment and admitted killing the victim on April 15, 2011, by beating him to death with his hands and feet.  Lovato admitted that he acted with malice aforethought as he beat the victim to death.  According to court filings, a preliminary autopsy report indicated that the victim died as a result of multiple blunt force trauma.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Lovato will be sentenced to twelve years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release.  Lovato has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Santa Fe office of the FBI and the Southern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Programs and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark T. Baker and Holland S. Kastrin.

ALBUQUERQUE – James Anzara, 35, a member and resident of Isleta Pueblo, was sentenced late yesterday afternoon to 28 months in years in federal prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for his involuntary manslaughter conviction. 

Anzara was indicted on an involuntary manslaughter charge on Feb. 27, 2013, and was arrested on March 5, 2013.  The indictment charged Anzara with crashing his vehicle while driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs and causing the death of an Isleta Pueblo man who was a passenger in his vehicle.  The crash occurred on April 21, 2012, within Isleta Pueblo lands.  Anzara was prosecuted on tribal charges arising out of the crash in tribal court and served 360 days in tribal custody.  On June 11, 2013, Anzara entered a guilty plea to the indictment.

The federal prison sentence imposed on Anzara is in addition to the 360 days Anzara already spent in tribal custody.

This case was investigated by the Southern Pueblos of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and Isleta Tribal Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine Y. Ramirez.

ALBUQUERQUE – Late yesterday afternoon Emma Rosemary Hossy, 23, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for her attempted armed bank robbery conviction.  Hossy is a naturalized U.S. citizen from South Africa who was residing in Albuquerque, N.M., when she was arrested in this case.

Hossy was arrested on Dec. 9, 2012, on a criminal complaint charging her with attempted armed bank robbery.  She subsequently was indicted on that same charge.

According to court records, Hossy attempted to rob the Wells Fargo Bank branch located at 8333 Montgomery Boulevard NE in Albuquerque on Dec. 7, 2012.  On that day, a woman, subsequently identified as Hossy, approached a teller station and told the teller that she needed four thousand dollars.  Hossy then displayed an object and said she would press “the detonator and blow up the building” if the teller did not promptly comply with her demand.  Hossy left the bank without any cash after she apparently noticed that the teller had pressed an emergency button located under the counter of the teller station.  

Hossy was arrested two days later after an anonymous tipster provided information about her whereabouts after seeing bank surveillance camera photographs of Hossy in news reports. Following Hossy’s arrest, the bomb squads of the FBI and Albuquerque Police Department located the object displayed by Hossy during the attempted bank robbery and determined that it was a hoax bomb device.  

Hossy pleaded guilty to the indictment on June 20, 2013, without the benefit of a plea agreement.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney William J. Pflugrath.

ALBUQUERQUE – Permanuel Castillo, 23, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Torreon, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to ten years in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for using a firearm in relation to a crime of violence.

The charges against Castillo arose out of the Sept. 27, 2012 shooting of his girlfriend.  On that day, New Mexico State Police officers responded to a call regarding a shooting at Castillo’s residence, which is located on the Navajo Indian Reservation.  During questioning, Castillo initially claimed that his girlfriend had been the victim of a drive-by shooting.  After further questioning, Castillo admitted shooting the victim multiple times in the chest but claimed that it was an accident. 

Castillo was arrested on Sept. 27, 2012, on tribal charges by officers of the Navajo Division of Public Safety and was held in tribal custody until his arrest on Oct. 24, 2012, on a federal criminal complaint.  Castillo subsequently was charged in a three-count indictment with (1) assault with a dangerous weapon, (2) assault resulting in serious bodily injury, and (3) using a firearm during a crime of violence. 

On April 30, 2013, Castillo pleaded guilty to Count 3 of the indictment, charging him with using a firearm during a crime of violence, and admitted assaulting the victim by shooting her with a rifle.  As a result of the assault, the victim sustained three gunshot wounds to the chest.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI, the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety and the New Mexico State Police, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Novaline D. Wilson. 

The case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women, and seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.

ALBUQUERQUE – Neilson McKensley, 49, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., was sentenced this morning to 57 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction for aiding and abetting an armed robbery in Indian Country.

McKensley was arrested on Nov. 13, 2012, on a criminal complaint charging him with being an accomplice to an armed robbery of a residence in Shiprock on Oct. 26, 2012.  He subsequently was indicted on that same charge.  McKensley has been in federal custody since his arrest.

According to court records, McKensley assisted Randy Coolidge, 46, in robbing the residence of an acquaintance in the early hours of Oct. 27, 2012, by driving Coolidge to the residence.  After putting duct tape over his face to conceal his identity, Coolidge approached the residence armed with a pistol.  When Coolidge tried to push his way into the residence, the victim attempted to take the pistol away from Coolidge.  As the two men fought over the pistol, the pistol discharged and Coolidge was shot in the chest and stomach.  Coolidge subsequently died of his wounds.  The victim then realized that McKensley, whose face also was covered with black duct tape and who was armed with a steel pipe, was standing by his door.  After attempting unsuccessfully to drag Coolidge from the residence, McKensley left Coolidge behind and drove away.  Officers initiated the investigation leading to McKensley’s arrest after Coolidge’s body was found shortly thereafter.

On May 6, 2013, McKensley pleaded guilty to the indictment and admitted driving Coolidge to the victim’s residence knowing that Coolidge intended to take items of value from the victim by force and violence.  McKensley also admitted that he intended to help Coolidge rob the victim. 

This case was investigated by Albuquerque and Farmington offices of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark T. Baker.

ALBUQUERQUE – Brendan Harry, 21, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Crownpoint, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to 57 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on involuntary manslaughter and assault charges.  Harry also was ordered to pay $2,052.13 in restitution to cover funeral and other expenses incurred by one victim’s family.

Harry was charged in an indictment with three counts of involuntary manslaughter and one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury which arose out of a single motor vehicle crash that occurred at approximately 5:00 a.m. on March 31, 2012, near Borrego Pass, N.M., on the Navajo Indian Reservation.  Three individuals who were passengers were ejected when the vehicle rolled at high speed.  Each of the three victims died as a result of injuries they sustained during the crash.  A fourth passenger suffered serious bodily injuries.  All four victims were young adult and members of the Navajo Nation. 

On June 3, 2013, Harry pleaded guilty to all four counts of the indictment.  In entering his guilty plea, Harry admitted that he was driving while intoxicated and caused the death of three of his passengers and serious injury to a fourth passenger when he crashed the vehicle.

This case was investigated by the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle T. Nayback.

ALBUQUERQUE – Shelly Nichols, 43, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced this afternoon to 25 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for her conviction on aggravated identity theft charges.  Nichols, together with her co-defendant, also was ordered to pay $141,233.57 in restitution.

Nichols, who is now known by her married name Shelly Lopez, and her co-defendant, Donna Gabaldon, 42, of Rio Rancho, N.M., were charged in March 2012, in a 60-count indictment alleging identity theft, passing counterfeit checks with the intent to deceive bank officials, and aggravated identity theft charges. 

Nichols pleaded guilty to one count of identity theft and two counts of aggravated identity theft charges on May 16, 2013.  In entering her guilty plea, Nichols admitted that from Oct. 2009 through June 2010, she and Gabaldon cashed fake payroll checks at Wal-Mart stores in New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, Colorado and Texas.  According to her plea agreement, Nichols created fake drivers’ licenses with false names, addresses and license numbers that had photographs of herself or Gabaldon on them.  Nichols also created fake checks made payable to the individuals identified in the fake drivers’ licenses.  Nichols and Gabaldon then used the fake drivers’ licenses to cash the fake checks at Wal-Mart stores.  When cashing the fake checks, Nichols and Gabaldon used the social security numbers of real people who did not know the women were using their social security numbers and had not given them permission to do so.  Gabaldon gave Nichols half of the money that she obtained from cashing the fake checks.

Nichols also admitted that Gabaldon and she fraudulently received at least $141,233.57 by cashing fake payroll checks at Wal-Mart stores.  Nichols and Gabaldon obtained additional cash and other items of value by making purchases using fake personal checks that Nichols printed.

Gabaldon pleaded guilty on May 25, 2012, to two counts of aggravated identity theft.  On Sept. 19, 2012, Gabaldon was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by a year of supervised release.

Nicholas and Gabaldon are required jointly to pay $141,233.57 in restitution to the victims of their criminal conduct.  Nichols also was ordered to forfeit a 2009 Hummer, computers and other electronic equipment.

“Shelly Nichols was a top five Property Crime Offender in the city of Albuquerque and State of New Mexico when she was arrested in this case,” said Richard Ferretti, Resident Agent in Charge of the Albuquerque Resident Office of the U.S. Secret Service.  “Identity theft related investigations are a top priority of the U.S. Secret Service in Albuquerque, and we work closely with our partners in the Albuquerque Financial Crimes Task Force to aggressively investigate, arrest, and prosecute those committing these crimes.”

Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough commended the U.S. Secret Service special agents who investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia L. Weisman who prosecuted the case.

ALBUQUERQUE – Donovan Eric Williams, 24, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Whippoorwill, Ariz., pleaded guilty to an indictment charging him with assaulting a federal officer, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough and Director John Billison of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety.

Williams was arrested on April 24, 2013, based on a criminal complaint charging him with assault with a dangerous weapon.  According to the complaint, Williams assaulted a Sergeant of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety by deliberately veering his vehicle into her police vehicle on March 21, 2013, near Church Rock, N.M.  Williams subsequently was indicted and charged with assaulting a federal officer who was engaged in the performance of her official duties because the tribal officer possessed a Special Law Enforcement Commission from the BIA at the time of the assault. 

In his plea agreement, Williams admitted intentionally assaulting a federal officer on March 21, 2013.  Williams acknowledged that, at the time of the assault, he was being pursued by a tribal officer who was attempting to pull his vehicle over and the federal officer was approaching him from the opposite direction.  Williams admitted intentionally striking the federal officer’s vehicle even though the officer had pulled her marked police vehicle off to the side of the road to avoid a collision.   Williams subsequently learned that the officer was commissioned as a federal law enforcement officer at the time of the assault.

Under the terms of his plea agreement, Williams will be sentenced to 46 months in prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  Williams is in federal custody and will remain detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Crownpoint office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacob A. Wishard.

ALBUQUERQUE – A real estate broker and a loan officer, both from Albuquerque, N.M., will be serving federal prison sentences for their wire fraud convictions, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough and Special Agent in Charge Carol K.O. Lee of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI.

Keith Michael Courtney, 31, was sentenced on Oct. 9, 2013, to 24 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.  His co-defendant Jason Johns, 40, was sentenced yesterday to five months in prison followed by five months of home detention and three years of supervised release.  Courtney and Johns also were ordered jointly to pay $493,230.88 in restitution and a $1.6 million money judgment to the United States.

Courtney and Johns were indicted in Nov. 2011, on wire fraud charges.  The three-count indictment alleged that between Nov. 2006 and Sept. 2007, Courtney and Johns schemed to defraud mortgage lenders by using straw buyers to apply for residential mortgage loans.  At the time of the offenses charged, Courtney was part owner of Black Diamond Construction Company (BDCC), Veritas Mortgage Company and Polaris Realty, all of which maintained offices in Albuquerque.  Johns was a loan officer with Veritas Mortgage Company.
 
In Feb. 2012, Johns pled guilty to the indictment.  Johns admitted participating in the unlawful scheme alleged in the indictment which resulted in three wire transfers of funds in the aggregate amount of $1,601,775.84 by mortgage lenders based on false and fraudulent representations made in connection with the sale of two residences built by Courtney’s business.

Courtney was found guilty by a jury on the three counts of the indictment on March 28, 2013, after a four-day trial.  The evidence at trial showed that Courtney’s company, BDCC, built two houses, one in Albuquerque and the other in Santa Fe.  After the houses were completed, Courtney and Johns solicited straw buyers to purchase the houses, using the names and credit histories of the straw buyers to obtain financing from Plaza Home Mortgage Company and Lehman Brothers Bank.  The loan applications falsely stated that the borrowers were buying the houses as primary residences, when in fact they had no intention of ever living in the houses.  The straw buyers put no money into the transactions, did not make the mortgage payments, and were to receive $5,000.00 once the houses were resold.  They were told that Courtney would make the mortgage payments until the houses were resold.

As a result of the false loan applications, which did not inform the lenders that the borrowers were straw borrowers, Plaza Home Mortgage Company wired two loans for $660,772.50 and $99,250.00 in connection with the Albuquerque house.  Lehman Brothers Bank wired $641,803.34 for a loan in connection with the Santa Fe house.  Courtney obtained loans in the aggregate amount of $1,601,775.84 from the two mortgage lenders based on the fraudulent transactions.  Courtney made mortgage payments on each property for a time after the transactions closed but ultimately stopped making payments on both, at which point the houses went into foreclosure.  The mortgage companies suffered losses as a result.

            This case was investigated by the Albuquerque Division of the FBI and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary L. Higgins.

ALBUQUERQUE – Rayvell Vann, 46, of Omaha, Neb., was sentenced this afternoon to 15 years months in prison followed by at least eight years of supervised release for his drug trafficking conviction, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steve C. Yarbrough and Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit of the DEA’s El Paso Field Division.

Vann was arrested in Albuquerque, N.M., on April 9, 2012, on drug trafficking charges in a criminal complaint.  Vann subsequently was indicted and charged with (1) possession of more than 100 grams of phencyclidine (PCP) with intent to distribute, and (2) possession of codeine with intent to distribute.  On March 13, 2013, a jury found him guilty on both counts of the indictment.

According to the evidence at trial, on April 9, 2012, a DEA special agent, who was conducting an interdiction investigation at the AmTrak station in Albuquerque, approached Vann, who was a passenger on a train traveling from Los Angeles, Calif., to Omaha.  After identifying himself as a law enforcement officer, the agent requested and received Vann’s consent to talk to him.  During the recorded conversation, Vann said that he had traveled by plane to Los Angeles from Kansas City two weeks earlier and was returning from his travels. 

Vann, who was traveling with one bag and a briefcase, let the agent search his bag which contained only a pink gift-wrapped box and a child’s dress despite Vann’s claim to have been in Los Angeles for two weeks.  Vann initially claimed that the box contained a birthday gift for his aunt but could not provide his aunt’s birth date.  Later, Vann admitted that the box contained illegal drugs, codeine cough syrup and Oxycotin, a prescription painkiller.  The agent then arrested Vann and obtained a search warrant for the box.

When the box was opened, the agents quickly realized that it did not contain only codeine and painkillers because of the foam packaging inside the box and the pungent odor of ether that was released when they cut the foam.  Recognizing the odor as PCP and finding 16 ounces of PCP in the box, the agents arranged for a bio-hazard expert to take possession of the PCP. When the agents interviewed Vann, he expressed surprise that the box contained PCP; he admitted purchasing PCP, codeine and Oxycotin while in Los Angeles, but claimed to have sent the PCP to Omaha by an expedited courier service.            

This case was investigated by the Interdiction Unit of the DEA’s Albuquerque office which focuses on disrupting the flow of narcotics, weapons, and the proceeds of illegal activities as they are smuggled into, or through, New Mexico in passenger buses, passenger trains, commercial vehicles and automobiles.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David M. Walsh and Norman Cairns.

ALBUQUERQUE – Yesterday Lloyd Jonathon Fry, 28, a resident of Hollywood, Calif., who was in the process of relocating to Piqua, Ohio, when he was arrested in May 2013, pleaded guilty in Las Cruces federal court to unlawful possession of pipe bombs. 

Fry and his co-defendant Rona Ma-Rey Milan Antipatia, 29, a legal permanent resident from the Philippines who resides in Redondo Beach, Calif., were arrested on May 27, 2013, by Border Patrol agents at the U.S. Border Patrol Checkpoint west of Alamogordo, N.M.  The arrests were made after the agents discovered four pipe bombs, a fully-loaded subcompact pistol with a 30-round magazine, and marijuana in their vehicle and the small trailer it was towing during a routine inspection at the checkpoint.  Fry and Antipatia were then charged in a criminal complaint with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and using a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

Yesterday afternoon, Fry pled guilty to a felony information charging him with unlawfully possessing firearms, the four pipe bombs, that were not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.  At sentencing, Fry faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison.  Fry has been in custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

Antipatia has pleaded not guilty to the charges against her. The charges against Antipatia are merely accusations and she is presumed innocent unless found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Border Patrol and the Bomb Squad from the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office and is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy M. Castellano of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.

ALBUQUERQUE – Eddie Shirley, 28, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., was sentenced this morning to seven years in federal prison for using and brandishing a firearm in relation to a crime of violence on the Navajo Indian Reservation.  Shirley will be on supervised release for seven years after he completes his prison sentence.

Shirley was arrested in Dec. 2012, on a criminal complaint charging him and co-defendant, Jerrileta Singer, 32, with the armed robbery of a Sonic Drive-In Restaurant in Shiprock on Nov. 30, 2012.  He has been in federal custody since his arrest.  Singer subsequently was arrested in Jan. 2013.  The two were then indicted and charged with (1) robbery, and (2) using and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

Shirley pleaded guilty on June 25, 2013 to Count 2 of the indictment and admitted using a firearm to rob the Sonic Drive-In in Shiprock on Nov. 30, 2012.  Shirley acknowledged that a female participated in the robbery and that together they used force, intimidation and violence to take money from the restaurant’s employees. 

On July 25, 2013, Singer pleaded guilty to Count 1, the robbery charge, of the indictment and admitted her role in robbing four individuals in the restaurant by use of force, violence and intimidation and taking money belonging to the restaurant.  Singer faces a maximum of 15 years in prison when she is sentenced.  Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for Oct. 28, 2103.

This case was investigated by Farmington office of the FBI and the Shiprock office of the Navajo Nation Division of Public Safety, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Novaline D. Wilson.

ALBUQUERQUE – James Allen Moquino, 31, a member of Santa Clara Pueblo, N.M., pleaded guilty this morning to a federal assault charge, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Steven C. Yarbrough and DuWayne W. Honahni, Sr., Special Agent in Charge of District IV of BIA’s Office of Justice Services.

Moquino was arrested on July 5, 2013 based on an indictment charging him with assaulting a woman and causing her serious bodily injury.  According to the indictment, Moquino committed the crime on Nov. 21, 2010, in Indian Country within Rio Arriba County. 

During this morning’s proceedings, Moquino entered a guilty plea to the indictment and admitted that he assaulted his intimate partner and the mother of his child by repeatedly striking her in the head and face causing her to suffer serious bodily injury.  Moquino further admitted that the assault occurred within Santa Clara Pueblo. 

Moquino has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.  At sentencing, Moquino faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison.

This case was investigated by the Northern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney David M. Adams.

The case was brought pursuant to the Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (Tribal SAUSA) Pilot Project which is sponsored by the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women, and seeks to train tribal prosecutors in federal law, procedure and investigative techniques to increase the likelihood that every viable violent offense against Native women is prosecuted in either federal court or tribal court, or both.  The Tribal SAUSA Pilot Project was largely driven by input gathered from annual tribal consultations on violence against women, and is another step in the Justice Department's on-going efforts to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.