Carlsbad Felon Christopher Reza Gets Ten-Year Penalty for Narcotics & Gun Law Violation

ALBUQUERQUE – Christopher O. Reza, 33, a Carlsbad resident, was handed a ten-year sentence yesterday afternoon in federal court in Las Cruces for methamphetamine trafficking and firearms violations.

The sentence includes four years of supervised release following his prison term. Reza’s prosecution is part of a U.S. Attorney’s Office initiative targeting violent repeat offenders, aiming to keep them out of New Mexico communities for as long as possible.

Reza was nabbed on May 19, 2014, after being charged with unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition and using a firearm in relation to a drug crime. Authorities seized multiple weapons, ammunition, methamphetamine, heroin, and marijuana during a January 28, 2014, raid at his Carlsbad residence.

With a string of felony convictions including shooting at an inhabited dwelling and possession of meth with intent to distribute, Reza was barred from possessing firearms. He pleaded guilty on December 20, 2014, to two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm and one count of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.

This case was a collaborative effort by the Roswell office of the ATF, the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force, local police departments, and the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Gould handled the prosecution.

The Pecos Valley Drug Task Force is part of the HIDTA program, which aims to combat drug trafficking through coordinated law enforcement efforts. HIDTA was established under the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 and seeks to reduce drug production and trafficking in critical regions across the United States.