Santa Fe Man Sentenced to 130 Months in Federal Prison for Crack Cocaine Trafficking Conviction

ALBUQUERQUE – Matthew J. Holmes, 31, of Santa Fe, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 130 months in prison for his cocaine base trafficking conviction.  Holmes will be on supervised release for four years after completing his term of imprisonment.  The court also entered an order requiring Holmes to forfeit $4,146.00 found in Holmes’ possession when he was arrested.

Holmes was arrested on Feb. 24, 2015, and charged in a criminal complaint with possession of cocaine base, more commonly known as “crack” or “crack cocaine,” with intent to distribute.  According to the complaint, on Feb. 24, 2014, the Santa Fe Police Department (SFPD) received information that Holmes had an outstanding state arrest warrant.  Based on that information, SFPD officers initiated a traffic stop on Holmes’ vehicle.  After a brief foot pursuit, the officers were able to apprehend Holmes.   At the time of his arrest, Holmes possessed a distribution quantity of crack cocaine and drug paraphernalia.  Holmes subsequently was indicted and charged with possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute.

On Feb. 17, 2015, Holmes pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that on Feb. 24, 2014, he possessed 74.3 grams of crack cocaine in three plastic bags and $4,146.00 in cash.  Holmes also admitted that he possessed the drugs with the intention of distributing it to others.

This case was investigated by the Santa Fe office of the FBI and the HIDTA Region III Narcotics Task Force.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David M. Walsh and Norman Cairns.

The HIDTA Region III Narcotics Task Force is comprised of officers from the New Mexico State Police, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office and the Santa Fe Police Department.  The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988.  HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.