Two More Laguna Pueblo Members Plead Guilty to Charges Arising out of Drive-By Shooting of Acoma Pueblo Home

ALBUQUERQUE – Two more members of Laguna Pueblo have entered guilty pleas to crimes arising out of the drive-by shooting of an Acoma Pueblo home in Dec. 2012.

Cameron Joseph Kasero, 21, pleaded guilty today to an assault with a dangerous weapon charge.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Kasero will be sentenced to 96 months in prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  His sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled. 

Andrea Carrillo, 22, also entered a guilty plea today.  Carrillo pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting an assault with a dangerous weapon.  At sentencing, which has yet to be scheduled, she faces a statutory maximum sentence of ten years in prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  

Kasero and Carrillo were two of four Laguna Pueblo members charged with assault and firearms offenses arising out of a drive-by shooting at an Acoma Pueblo home.  They and their two co-defendants, Preston Chino, 21, and Joseph Edward Lucero, 24, were indicted in July 2013, for assaulting two men and a woman on Dec. 9, 2012, by discharging firearms at a residence located in Acoma Pueblo in Cibola County, N.M.

During his plea hearing, Kasero admitted assaulting the victims discharging a shotgun at a residence while it was occupied by the victims.  During her plea hearing, Carrillo admitted aiding the assault on the victims by providing her co-defendants with directions to the residence with the understanding that her co-defendants intended to commit an assault at that location.   

Co-defendant Chino entered a guilty plea on Aug. 27, 2014, to a federal assault charge, and admitted aiding Kasero and Lucero in assaulting the three victims by providing shotguns and ammunition to them.  He also admitted driving his co-defendants to the victims’ Acoma Pueblo home where they discharged the shotguns multiple times in the direction of the residence.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Chino will be sentenced to 96 months in prison followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.  Chino is in federal custody and will remain detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

Co-defendant Lucero has entered a not guilty plea to the charges in the indictment.  Charges in indictments are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI, the Laguna Agency of the BIA’s Office of Justice Services, the Acoma Pueblo Tribal Police and the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle T. Nayback is prosecuting the case.