District Court: Beware Fraudulent Text Message Regarding Traffic Violation
COURT News:
ALBUQUERQUE — The United States District Court for the District of New Mexico has recently been notified of individuals being targeted in a court-related scam since Monday, June 1, 2026. The targets are receiving a text message from a number that begins with 212. The message provides notice of an alleged traffic citation with the “New Mexico District Court.” The notification provides the name of an issuing officer, assigned judge, clerk of court, and alleged case number. The recipient is advised that they must appear in court on a specific date (typically the day following the date Read More
Court Of Appeals Issues Opinion In Case About Elk Management In New Mexico
COURT News:
The state Court of Appeals today issued an opinion in a lawsuit brought by Catron County landowners over elk management by the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish.
Click here to read the opinion in case numbers A-1-CA-42309 and A-1-CA-42310. Read More
FBI: Gallup Man Faces Federal Charges For Assault
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — A Gallup man is facing federal charges for an assault that allegedly occurred in 2024.
According to court documents, on Nov. 9, 2024, Russell Lee Saunders, Sr., 45, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, assaulted and seriously injured John Doe.
Saunders is charged with assault resulting in serious bodily injury and will remain in third party custody pending trial which has not yet been scheduled. If convicted, Saunders faces up to 10 years in prison.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Justin A. Garris, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Read More
New Mexico Forestry Division Seedling Program To Focus On Fire-Damaged Areas
Ponderosa pine seedlings grow at the John T. Harrington Forestry Research Center. Photo by George Ducker
NMFD News:
SANTA FE – To better meet New Mexico’s urgent reforestation needs, the New Mexico Forestry Division (NMFD) is re-energizing its popular Conservation Seedling Program to steer key species to targeted areas and provide technical support to improve tree survival rates, ultimately protecting our forests and reducing long-term damage from high-severity wildfires.
Beginning this fall, the new Seedlings for Reforestation program will guide high-demand seedling varieties Read More
Fugitive Who Stole Dead Man’s Identity For Four Decades Pleads Guilty To Fraud Charges
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE — A fugitive who lived for more than 40 years under the stolen identity of a deceased Arkansas man pleaded guilty to federal identity theft, passport fraud, and firearms offenses.
According to court documents, Stephen Craig Campbell, 73, assumed the identity of Walter Lee Coffman, who died in 1975 at the age of 22, just months after graduating from the University of Arkansas with an engineering degree in the early 1980s. Campbell first applied for a U.S. passport in Coffman’s name in 1984 and renewed it multiple times, always submitting his own photograph and current address. Read More
