Blog Archives

NMSP Arrest a Rio Rancho Man driving a stolen Corrales Fire Truck

8/16/2022

Cibola, NM – On August 16, 2022, the New Mexico State Police received reports of a stolen Corrales Fire Department truck traveling west on Interstate 40 near milepost 149. The Corrales fire truck was reported as stolen while crews were on a medical call at a residence in Corrales, NM.

At around 8:06 a.m., the New Mexico State Police was contacted by the Laguna Police Department (LPD), who advised they were pursuing the stolen fire truck west on Interstate 40 near milepost 135. Around milepost 117, a New Mexico State Police officer assisted LPD. Another LPD officer assisting, deployed tire deflation devices near milepost 114. The driver of the stolen fire truck, later identified as Dennis L. Chavez (35) of Rio Rancho, NM drove over the tire deflation devices. Chavez continued to drive west on Interstate 40, exiting off the Interstate at exit 108. Chavez then drove into the parking lot of the Dancing Eagle Gas Station, where he crashed into a wall. After the crash, Chavez exited the vehicle and ignored numerous verbal commands given by officers to surrender peacefully. Officers were able to take Chavez into custody.

Dennis L. Chavez was transported and booked into the Cibola County Correction Center Core Civic in Milan, NM. Chavez was charged with the following:

Receiving or Transferring a Stolen Motor Vehicle
Aggravated Fleeing from a Law Enforcement Officer
Resisting, Evading, or Obstruction of a Peace Officer
Criminal Damage to Property (Under $1,000)

Chavez also had an outstanding felony arrest warrant for his arrest out of the Second Judicial District Court in Albuquerque, NM.

Brothers from Mexico charged with transporting aliens resulting in death

8/16/2022

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced that Jorge Garcia-Rascon, 21, and Julio Garcia-Rascon, 19, both of Mexico, have been charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to smuggle illegal aliens resulting in death. Jorge Garcia-Rascon made an initial appearance on July 29 and will remain in custody pending arraignment, which has not been scheduled. Julio Garcia-Rascon made an initial appearance on Aug. 12 and will remain in custody pending trial.
  According to the complaint, on July 27, Border Patrol agents attempted to make a traffic stop on an SUV traveling on New Mexico Highway 9 in Santa Teresa, New Mexico. The SUV failed to yield and continued at a high rate of speed. As the agents ceased their pursuit and turned off their emergency lights and sirens, the SUV lost control and flipped and rolled off the road.
  When law enforcement approached the vehicle, Jorge Garcia-Rascon and Julio Garcia-Rascon allegedly attempted to flee on foot but were apprehended. Law enforcement on the scene established that there were 13 occupants in the vehicle, all of whom were undocumented non-citizens. Two of the people in the vehicle died during the rollover. All of the other occupants except Jorge and Julio Garcia-Rascon were transported to University Medical Center in El Paso, Texas, for treatment.
  A complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Jorge and Julio Garcia-Rascon face up to life in prison or death.
  Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) investigated this case with assistance from U.S. Border Patrol. Assistant United States Attorney Joni Autrey Stahl is prosecuting the case.

Medical investigator rules Baldwin set shooting an accident

8/16/2022

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's Office of the Medical Investigator has determined that the fatal film-set shooting of a cinematographer by actor and producer Alec Baldwin last year was an accident.
The office issued its determination after completing an autopsy of Halyna Hutchins and reviewing law enforcement reports.
Some of those reports were made public Monday by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office. Prosecutors have not yet decided if any charges will be filed in the case.
An FBI analysis of the revolver in Baldwin's hand during the Oct. 21 rehearsal suggested it was in working order at the time and would not have discharged unless the trigger had been pulled.

Tree falling on power lines blamed in fatal New Mexico fire

8/16/2022

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Investigators have determined that a tree falling in power lines started a fatal fire that also destroyed more than 200 homes in the Ruidoso area four months ago.
   According to the Albuquerque Journal, a report issued by the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department states that wind gusts of up to 80 mph toppled a 49-foot-tall drought-stressed tree on April 12, causing electrical lines to arc and ignite the fire.
  The following day, authorities reported finding the remains of an elderly couple who died while trying to evacuate their burning home.
  The fire has spawned two lawsuits filed on behalf of dozens of Ruidoso property owners.

Rio Rancho police arrest man after shootout with officers

8/16/2022

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Police in the Albuquerque suburb of Rio Rancho say they've arrested a man who fled a Walmart parking lot after opening fire on officers at very close range as they tried to detain him.
  Rio Rancho Police said in a statement that officers were investigating a suspicious vehicle in the store parking lot just before 6:30 a.m. Saturday.
  That's when a man came out of the Walmart and ran for the vehicle as they approached it. As the officers tried to detain the man, he grabbed a gun from between the seats of the vehicle an opened fire. Officers retreated, took cover and fired back, but the man drove off.
  No officers were hurt. The man was later arrested in Albuquerque and had a gunshot wound.

Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin back in court

8/16/2022

OTERO COUNTY - (KRQE*) –The trial for Otero County Commissioner and Cowboys for Trump founder, Couy Griffin begins Monday in Santa Fe. Griffin is fighting to keep his seat on the county commission after three residents of Santa Fe and Los Alamos Counties filed a lawsuit saying he should be removed from office because of his participation in the January 6th insurrection at the Capitol.

Griffin could not only lose his seat on the commission but could also be barred from ever running for office again. Griffin was previously convicted of a misdemeanor for entering Capitol grounds and was sentenced to 14 days, but was given credit for time served.
Monday in court Griffin argued that he has already faced a criminal trial in the federal court system and that previous recall efforts to remove him from office failed. He called the current bench trial unfair and un-American.

“This lawsuit is about removing a duly elected county commissioner from office through the civil court. By allowing this case to move forward, you’re going to set a very dangerous precedent,” said Griffin.

In July, Griffin filed a motion to quash the lawsuit. After a tense back-and-forth about who drafted the pleadings, Judge Francis Mathew denied the motion.

Judge: Now I’m going to ask you again, who drafted those pleadings?
Griffin: “A friend of mine in Roswell, New Mexico. His name is Hiram.”
Judge: “Hiram, what?”
Griffin: “As God as my witness I do not know his last name. I only know him by his first name, which his first name is Hiram…and he’s not a licensed attorney, he’s not a BAR-certified attorney, he’s a friend of mine who knows the law.”
The judge denied the motion and said he would refer Hiram to the disciplinary counsel for the investigation of possibly practicing law without having a license.

Much of Monday’s trial was spent with the plaintiff’s attorneys going over Griffin’s actions on January 6th, bringing up videos and pictures from that day. Griffin, who is defending himself, said he went to Washington D.C. to peacefully protest and pray. He went on some tangents prompting Judge Mathew to put his foot down to stay on track.

*story from the New Mexico News Network via KRQE-TV.

Over 30 Dangerous Human Smuggling Schemes Disrupted

8/15/2022

EL PASO, Texas – El Paso Sector Border Patrol Agents in partnership with law-enforcement agencies across the region disrupted numerous human smugglings attempts this week, in five days. One of the most significant events occurred on August 9, 2022, when Santa Teresa Border Patrol
  Agents were conducting surveillance operations on NM Highway 9 and observed a dark color SUV traveling westbound. This same vehicle was seen approximately 20 minutes later traveling eastbound, but now appeared to be weighed down. Santa Teresa Border Patrol Agents performed a vehicle stop and discovered 11 people crammed inside. The migrants were medically evaluated and processed accordingly. The United States Citizen driver was detained and will be facing charges for human smuggling.
  Later that same day, Border Patrol Agents from the same station, the El Paso Sector Integrated Targeting Team, Santa Teresa Anti-Smuggling Unit, Texas Department of Public Safety and El Paso Police Department disrupted a human smuggling scheme with 10 smuggled migrants.
  It all started when Border Patrol Agents observed a Maroon Toyota Prius traveling east near Airport Road in Santa Teresa, New Mexico that seemed overloaded with people coming from an area used for human smuggling. El Paso Police Department performed a vehicle stop near Desert Blvd in El Paso, Texas and discovered 10 migrants inside the small economy car. Border Patrol Was notified and migrants from Ecuador, Mexico, Brazil, and Honduras were taken to the Santa Teresa Station for processing. The driver, a U.S. citizen, will face State charges for the human smuggling scheme.
  On August 10, Border Patrol Agents assigned to the Santa Teresa Station observed several individuals enter the trunk and the passenger seat of a small sedan on NM Highway 9. The agents performed a vehicle stop minutes after and encountered three migrants inside the trunk and another six crammed inside the back seat. The migrants, all from Mexico including an unaccompanied16-year-old minor, were medically evaluated, and processed accordingly. The driver, a citizen from Mexico, was detained on scene. On August 12, the El Paso Sector ITT, Santa Teresa ASU, and Texas Department of Public Safety disrupted a human smuggling scheme resulting in the discovery of eight migrants crammed inside a black sedan. Agents performed the vehicle stop near Upper Valley Drive and Artcraft Road, discovering the migrants attempting to conceal themselves. The migrants, all from Mexico, were - 2 - processed and expelled under Title 42, while the driver, a United States citizen will face State charges for smuggling scheme.
  El Paso Sector Border Patrol has federally prosecuted 526 cases during the current Fiscal Year 2022.

Las Cruces man charged for threatening to burn New Mexico State University

8/15/2022

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced that John Oliver Hamilton made an initial appearance in federal court on Aug. 12 on a criminal complaint charging him with threatening to burn a building by means of fire. Hamilton, 54, of Las Cruces, New Mexico, will remain in custody pending a preliminary and detention hearing scheduled for Aug. 17.
  According to the complaint, on July 27, Hamilton allegedly made a string of telephone calls to the Office of Institutional Equality at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces. In those calls, as alleged in the complaint, Hamilton repeatedly threatened to burn the school. Under federal law, it is illegal to willfully make any threat by telephone to destroy any building by means of fire or an explosive.
  A complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Hamilton faces up to 10 years in prison.
  The Las Cruces Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the New Mexico State University Police. Assistant United States Attorney Joni Autrey Stahl is prosecuting the case.

Rio Rancho police arrest man after shootout with officers

8/14/2022

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Police in the Albuquerque suburb of Rio Rancho say they've arrested a man who fled a Walmart parking lot after opening fire on officers at very close range as they tried to detain him.
  Rio Rancho Police said in a statement that officers were investigating a suspicious vehicle in the store parking lot just before 6:30 a.m. Saturday.
  That's when a man came out of the Walmart and ran for the vehicle as they approached it. As the officers tried to detain the man, he grabbed a gun from between the seats of the vehicle an opened fire.
  Officers retreated, took cover and fired back, but the man drove off.
  No officers were hurt. The man was later arrested in Albuquerque and had a gunshot wound.

NM state police say armed Carlsbad man killed by deputies

8/13/2022

CARLSBAD, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico state police say a Carlsbad man has been shot and killed by Eddy County Sheriff's deputies.
  State police say 48-year-old Gabriel Mesa had an argument with his girlfriend and then left their home with her cell phone and a handgun Thursday night.
  Sheriff's deputies tracked him to a nearby open field and tried to persuade him to surrender. Mesa instead pointed the gun at two deputies and both shot at him.
State police said in a statement Friday evening that their investigators are working to independently confirm the account of the shooting and will provide their findings to the district attorney.
  Prosecutors will then determine if the shooting was justified.