Police

FBI: New Mexico Man Gets Life In Federal Prison For 2023 Carjacking Murder

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FBI News:

EL PASO — A New Mexico man was sentenced in a federal court in El Paso to life in prison for the carjacking, kidnapping and murder of a Las Cruces man, announced U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas, Justin R. Simmons.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, in December 2023, Brayden Matthew Alvarado, 23, of Vado, New Mexico, carjacked a man before driving him onto Fort Bliss desert property and fatally shooting him in the head with a 12-gauge shotgun. 

On Dec. 13, 2023, the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division conducted a crime scene investigation Read More

State Police Make Arrest After Fatal Motorcycle Crash On I-25

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NMSP News:

ALBUQUERQUE — On June 6, 2026, at approximately 11:54 p.m., the New Mexico State Police was requested by the Albuquerque Police Department to assume a fatal crash involving a motorcycle and one other vehicle on Interstate 25 northbound near Comanche Road in Albuquerque.

Upon arrival, officers observed several civilians rendering aid to the motorcyclist identified as Keegan Thomas (24). Emergency medical personnel responded to the scene and transported Thomas to an area hospital.

During the investigation, officers contacted witnesses who had stopped at the scene and located Read More

FBI Southwest Field Offices In Albuquerque & El Paso To Host Special Agent Recruitment Event June 26

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FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE — The FBI-Albuquerque and FBI-El Paso Field Offices will co-host an in-person recruiting event from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday, June 26 in El Paso.

This event is intended for individuals who are at least 21 years old interested in learning more about a career as an FBI Special Agent. Those who attend the recruiting event will have an opportunity to meet one-on-one with FBI executives, special agents, intelligence analysts, and other FBI personnel.

In addition, many of the FBI’s Critical Incident Response components such as SWAT, Evidence Recovery Teams, Crisis Negotiations, Read More

Op-Ed: ‘County Shows It Doesn’t Give A Flock About Surveilling Citizens’

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By JAMES RICKMAN
Los Alamos

Perhaps I should feel grateful that County leaders dispatched their official Spin Doctor to reply to my letter about the emergence of a network of Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs) in our community (link). But outside of Mr. Krueger’s “Trust Us, We’re the Government” response, the County continues to sidestep the issue of why the cameras were installed in the first place.

Is Los Alamos facing some kind of underlying existential threat that necessitates its citizens giving up some of their liberties to gain a little more security?

The way the County tells it, Read More

County Clarifications On Op-Ed ‘Don’t Join The Flock’

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By DAVID KRUEGER
Public Information Officer
Los Alamos County

I’m writing to provide some clarification regarding the Op-Ed “Don’t Join The Flock” (link).

Our data collection and retention policy for the Police Department’s automated license plate readers (ALPR) is clear that all data collected from those cameras are secured on local servers and solely for official use by the Los Alamos Police Department.

Only Evidence Technicians have access to the data. Everyone who accesses the data is logged. Evidence Technicians review requests to ensure access to the data is approved only for legitimate Read More

Los Alamos Police Department Honors Three Retiring Officers Following Decades Of Service

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From left to right: Sergeant Eric Wilhoit, Corporal Robert Larsen, Corporal Gilbert Padilla. Courtesy/LAC

LAPD News:

The Los Alamos Police Department is honoring the careers and service of three respected veteran officers whose retirements mark the end of decades of dedicated law enforcement service to the citizens of Los Alamos and communities across New Mexico.

Sergeant Eric Wilhoit, Corporal Robert Larsen, and Corporal Gilbert Padilla each retired during the month of May, with all three departures occurring within approximately one week of one another. While retirements represent Read More

Navajo Nation Woman Pleads Guilty To Assault Charges

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FBI News:

ALBUQUERQUE — A Navajo Nation woman pleaded guilty to shooting and seriously injuring a man in 2024.

According to court documents, on Nov. 17, 2024, Beverleta Tayah, 54, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, assaulted John Doe at a residence on the Navajo Nation after she armed herself with a handgun and shot John Doe in the chest causing serious bodily injury.

Tayah pleaded guilty to two federal felony offenses—Assault resulting in serious bodily injury and Assault with a dangerous weapon, each of which carries up to 10 years in prison at sentencing. Tayah will also be subject to up Read More

FBI: Gallup Man Faces Federal Charges For Assault

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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

Fugitive Who Stole Dead Man’s Identity For Four Decades Pleads Guilty To Fraud Charges

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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