Socorro Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Meth Trafficking

Carlos Tafoya, Jr., 35, of Socorro, N.M., pleaded guilty today to federal methamphetamine trafficking charges in Las Cruces, N.M., admitting to selling nearly four-tenths of a kilogram of crystal meth to an undercover agent and possessing over a kilo with intent to distribute. The plea locks in a prison sentence of 12 to 13 years, followed by a court-determined term of supervised release.

Tafoya was one of 34 individuals targeted in a sweeping December 2015 crackdown stemming from an 18-month DEA- and BIA-led investigation into drug trafficking on the Mescalero Apache Reservation. The probe, initiated in May 2014 after a spike in meth-fueled violence, expanded to dismantle two major supply networks in southeastern New Mexico. By August 2014, it was designated an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation—the first in Indian Country to deploy wiretaps to crack open cartel-style drug rings.

Tafoya was originally indicted on November 20, 2015, alongside seven other non-Natives, on charges of meth trafficking and money laundering. A superseding indictment filed September 21, 2016, nailed him on four counts: conspiracy to distribute meth from July 1 to November 13, 2015; distribution on October 15, 2015; possession with intent to distribute on November 13, 2015; and firearm possession during a drug crime on that same date—all in Socorro County. He’s also forfeiting $24,500 in illicit proceeds.

At today’s hearing, Tafoya admitted he sold 364.2 grams of meth to an undercover agent on October 15, 2015, and was caught with approximately 1.2 kilograms of the drug days later, stockpile ready for street sale. Worse, he committed these crimes while already on supervised release for a prior conviction—proof, prosecutors say, of a repeat offender with zero regard for the law.

The investigation seized more than ten kilograms of meth and triggered six federal indictments and a federal criminal complaint. Eighteen federal defendants were charged: 13 non-Natives and five tribal members. Sixteen of the 18 have already pleaded guilty. The remaining two have pleaded not guilty. Separately, 16 additional tribal members face charges in Mescalero Apache Tribal Court.

Tafoya remains in federal custody pending sentencing. The case was investigated by the DEA’s Las Cruces office and the BIA’s Office of Justice Services, District IV (Mescalero Agency), a rare but growing alliance cracking down on the flood of synthetic drugs poisoning tribal lands. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico is prosecuting. Charges are accusations; all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.