Michael Adams, Theft of Government Property, New Mexico 2017

ALBUQUERQUE – In a brazen theft, Michael Adams, 52, of Horizon City, Texas, has been sentenced to two years of probation for his conviction on a federal misdemeanor theft of government property charge.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Adams stole a package containing prescription pain medication sent by the Veterans Administration through the United Parcel Service (UPS) on Aug. 21, 2013. The medication was being shipped to a veteran in need.

Adams, who was employed by UPS in Alamogordo, N.M., at the time of the theft, was charged by a misdemeanor information filed on Dec. 12, 2016.

On Jan. 10, 2017, Adams pled guilty to the misdemeanor information and admitted to stealing the package containing prescription pain medication.

The case was investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of the Inspector General, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard C. Williams of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office as part of the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative.

The HOPE Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic, which has had a devastating impact on New Mexico. The initiative aims to protect communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reduce the number of opioid-related deaths in the state. Adams was also ordered to pay $537.03 in restitution to the victim of his crime.

The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: prevention and education, treatment, law enforcement, reentry, and strategic planning. The law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners.

The case is a reminder of the importance of protecting our veterans and the medication they need to manage their pain. It also highlights the ongoing efforts of law enforcement to combat the opioid epidemic in New Mexico.

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