Kewa Pueblo Man Sentenced to 16 Years for Machete Murder

A Kewa Pueblo man has been sentenced to 16 years in federal prison for his role in a brutal machete murder that shocked his community.

Adrian Chavez, 24, pleaded guilty in June 2012 to killing Nevin Garcia, a 20-year-old member of Kewa Pueblo, with a machete on October 21, 2009. Chavez was sentenced to 192 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release.

Chavez’s accomplices, Derrick Chavez, 26, and Myron Garcia, 24, were also sentenced for their roles in helping to cover up the crime. Myron Garcia was sentenced to five years in prison followed by three years of supervised release, while Derrick Chavez received 66 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.

The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales, Carol K.O. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the Albuquerque Division of the FBI, and DuWayne W. Honahni, Sr., Special Agent in Charge of District IV of BIA’s Office of Justice Services.

According to court documents, the murder occurred after Adrian Chavez and Nevin Garcia got into an argument while drinking with friends on a plot of land within Kewa Pueblo. Chavez struck Garcia in the face with a machete, and his accomplices helped him remove the victim’s clothing, wrap his body in a plastic tarp, and bury him in a shallow grave.

Chavez has been in federal custody since his arrest in October 2009, while Myron Garcia and Derrick Chavez were arrested in January 2009 and have also been in federal custody.

The case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and the Southern Pueblos Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Roberto D. Ortega.