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Defendant Sentenced to 70 Months in Prison for Heroin Trafficking
ALBUQUERQUE – Matthew Martinez, 38, of Espanola, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 70 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his conviction on a heroin trafficking charge.
The conviction stems from Martinez’s guilty plea to distributing heroin on September 16, 2015. According to court documents, Martinez admitted selling approximately two ounces of heroin to an undercover FBI agent outside of a Santa Fe-area Walmart store. Martinez is associated with the Syndicato de Nuevo Mexico (SNM) prison gang and became involved in the heroin trade as a result of his gang affiliation.
“New Mexico’s Espanola Valley has had one of the country’s highest heroin overdose death rates for decades. Every time a heroin trafficker is removed from the Valley, the community continues its efforts to turn the tide against the heroin epidemic that has devastated its residents for generations,” said U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez.
The HOPE Initiative, a partnership between the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the UNM Health Sciences Center, aims to protect communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico. The initiative has five components: prevention and education, treatment, law enforcement, reentry, and strategic planning.
The case was investigated by the Santa Fe office of the FBI with assistance from the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office and the New Mexico Corrections Department. The Organized Crimes Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case as part of the HOPE Initiative.
Martinez was also ordered to pay $500 in community restitution and to pay a $2,000 money judgment to the United States. The sentence should serve as a warning to those involved in the heroin trade that the FBI is committed to bringing them to justice.
Key Facts
- State: New Mexico
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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