Tabitha Marie Ochoa, Heroin Trafficking, New Mexico 2017

A 29-year-old Arizona woman pleaded guilty to a heroin trafficking charge in federal court in Albuquerque, New Mexico, today.

Tabitha Marie Ochoa, of Nogales, Arizona, was arrested in February 2017 after law enforcement officers found nine bundles of heroin weighing 5.26 pounds in her vehicle during a routine traffic stop in Cibola County, New Mexico, on January 30 and 31, 2017.

Ochoa pleaded guilty to possession of heroin with intent to distribute, admitting that she was paid to deliver the heroin to another person. She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and currently remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

The case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of Homeland Security Investigations and the New Mexico State Police 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 disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico. Opioid addiction has taken a toll on public safety, public health, and the economic viability of our communities.

The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: prevention and education, treatment, law enforcement, reentry, and strategic planning. The law enforcement component targets members of major heroin and opioid trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution. Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.

Ochoa’s co-defendant, Maryhelen Princess Ochoa, 32, also of Nogales, Arizona, remains in custody pending presentation of the case against her to a grand jury. Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law.

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