Las Cruces Man Sentenced to Imprisonment for One Year and One Day for Federal Money Laundering Conviction
Former Farmer’s Insurance Company Supervisor Defrauded Farmer’s of $150,000

LAS CRUCES—Earlier today in federal court in Las Cruces, Joseph Reyes Montes, 39, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison for conspiring to launder money. Montes will be placed on supervised release for three years after he completes his prison term. Montes also was ordered to pay $149,779 in restitution to Farmer’s Insurance Company. Montes, a resident of Las Cruces, was arrested on July 13, 2010, and released on a $5,000 unsecured bond. Montes remains on bond, and was ordered to self-surrender to a federal correctional facility to be designated by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

United States Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales said that Montes pled guilty to conspiracy to launder money obtained by making fraudulent insurance claims on October 5, 2010. According to Court records, between March 2007 and August 2009, Montes conspired with his now-estranged wife and co-defendant, Deniece Sanchez, to submit $150,000 in fraudulent insurance claims to Farmer’s Insurance Agency (“Farmer’s”) on approximately 30 separate occasions. Montes laundered the stolen money through Sanchez’s business bank account to give the funds the appearance of legitimate business income, rather than illegal proceeds of the scheme to defraud Farmer’s. At the time of the offense, Montes was a claims supervisor for Farmer’s.

On October 14, 2010, Sanchez also pled guilty to conspiracy to launder money. Sanchez remains on conditions of release pending her sentencing hearing in November.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrea W. Hattan.