Isleta Pueblo Man Patrick Carpio Gets 20 Years for Child Abuse

Patrick Carpio, 70, of Isleta Pueblo, N.M., is headed to federal prison for 20 years after pleading guilty to sexually abusing two Native American children—one just ten years old. The sentence, handed down in Albuquerque, includes a lifetime of supervised release and mandatory sex offender registration upon completion of his prison term.

Carpio was first arrested on May 1, 2015, following a four-count indictment charging him with three counts of abusive sexual contact and one count of aggravated sexual abuse. The crimes span over a decade, beginning in January 1999 and continuing through March 2013, all committed in Indian Country within Bernalillo County, N.M., where jurisdiction falls under federal law.

The superseding indictment, filed February 24, 2016, laid bare the horror: Carpio admitted to engaging in a sexual act with a ten-year-old Indian child in 2002 and having sexual contact with a 12-year-old Indian child in March 2013. Both victims were under the age of consent, and both assaults occurred within the boundaries of the Pueblo of Isleta.

On April 28, 2016, Carpio entered a guilty plea to Counts 3 and 4 of the superseding indictment—aggravated sexual abuse and abusive sexual contact—admitting his crimes without contest. His plea agreement sealed his fate, bypassing a trial and ensuring a swift path to sentencing in a case marked by its brutality and betrayal of community trust.

The investigation was led by the Southern Pueblos Agency of the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Office of Justice Services, which has increasingly focused on violent crimes within tribal jurisdictions where law enforcement resources are often stretched thin. Carpio’s capture and conviction underscore the federal government’s push to confront sexual violence in Native communities.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Mease prosecuted the case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a DOJ initiative launched in 2006 to combat child exploitation. The program coordinates federal, state, and local efforts to identify, rescue, and bring justice for victims of child sexual abuse—cases like Carpio’s serving as grim reminders of why the mission persists.