George Begay, Methamphetamine Trafficking, New Mexico 2016

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A local man has been sentenced to a year and a day in prison for his role in a methamphetamine trafficking operation.

George Begay, 47, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Fruitland, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to a year and a day in prison for his conviction on a methamphetamine trafficking charge. Begay will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.

Begay was arrested on May 11, 2016, on an indictment charging him with distributing methamphetamine on April 29, 2014, in San Juan County, N.M. On Sept. 28, 2016, Begay pled guilty to the indictment without the benefit of a plea agreement.

The investigation into Begay’s activities was led by the Albuquerque office of Homeland Security Investigations and the HIDTA Region II Narcotics Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine Y. Ramirez prosecuted the case.

The HIDTA Region II Narcotics Task Force is comprised of officers and investigators from the Farmington Police Department, San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, Bloomfield Police Department, Aztec Police Department and HSI Albuquerque. The task force is part of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, which was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988.

The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.

Begay’s sentence brings an end to a lengthy investigation and prosecution. The case serves as a reminder of the importance of law enforcement agencies working together to combat the scourge of drug trafficking in our community.

Related Federal Cases