LAS CRUCES, NM – Octavio Herrera, 54, of Ruidoso Downs, New Mexico, is headed to federal prison after being sentenced today to 60 months for trafficking methamphetamine. The sentence, handed down in federal court, brings a measure of closure to a sprawling, 18-month investigation that exposed a network of drug dealers preying on the Mescalero Apache Reservation.
Herrera was one of 34 individuals snared in the December 2015 crackdown, a joint operation between the DEA and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The investigation revealed a complex web of drug distribution, with eighteen defendants facing federal charges – five members of the Mescalero Apache Tribe and thirteen non-Natives – and another sixteen tribal members charged through the Mescalero Apache Tribal Court. The initial impetus for the probe was a disturbing spike in violent crime on the Reservation, directly linked to methamphetamine use.
What began as a targeted effort against a single drug trafficking organization quickly expanded to encompass two additional supply networks operating in southeastern New Mexico. These groups were allegedly funneling methamphetamine *into* the Reservation. In August 2014, the case was elevated to a Justice Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation, bringing in significant federal resources and, notably, marking one of the first instances of electronic surveillance – wiretaps – being deployed in Indian Country. Over ten kilograms of methamphetamine were seized during the lengthy investigation.
Herrera’s arrest came in September 2016, alongside co-defendants Rumaldo Varela Enriquez, 46, a Mexican national, and Johnny Flowers, 51, of Hobbs, New Mexico. The indictment leveled against them charged Herrera with conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, and multiple counts related to using communication devices to facilitate the drug trade. On January 11, 2017, Herrera entered a guilty plea to the conspiracy and possession charges, admitting to distributing methamphetamine in Hobbs and Lovington, NM, between March 4th and March 12th, 2015. He confessed to possessing 230.1 grams of the drug on March 12th, 2015, with clear intent to distribute.
Herrera isn’t the only one facing consequences. Enriquez pled guilty on September 9, 2016, and received a 57-month prison sentence on March 21, 2017, followed by deportation. Flowers, also pleading guilty on November 9, 2016, received time served and a two-year term of supervised release. These sentences send a message, but the damage done by this operation runs deep within the Mescalero Apache community.
The investigation and prosecution were a collaborative effort involving the DEA’s Las Cruces office, the BIA’s District IV Office of Justice Services (Mescalero Agency), the BIA’s Division of Drug Enforcement, the Mescalero Tribal Police Department, the Hatch Police Department, the FBI, and the Lea County Drug Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Terri J. Abernathy of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office, along with Mescalero Tribal Prosecutor Melissa Chavez, led the legal charge. Herrera will also be subject to four years of supervised release after completing his prison sentence.
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Key Facts
- State: New Mexico
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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