Skip to main content
Press Release

Prior Felon from Roswell Pleads Guilty to Violating Federal Narcotics and Firearms Laws

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico
Case Prosecuted as Part of HOPE Initiative which Seeks to Reduce the Number of Opioid-Related Deaths in New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE – Javier Madrid, 28, of Roswell, N.M., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to violating the federal narcotics trafficking and firearms laws under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Madrid was arrested in Nov. 2015, on a criminal complaint charging him with possession of methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine with intent to distribute and being a felon in possession of ammunition.  According to the complaint, on July 31, 2015, law enforcement agents executed a federal search warrant on Madrid’s residence and vehicle in Roswell where they discovered 17 grams of methamphetamine, 25 grams of heroin, 42 grams of cocaine, $3,960 in cash, and multiple rounds of ammunition.

Madrid was subsequently indicted on Feb. 17, 2016, and charged with possession of methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine with intent to distribute and being a felon in possession of ammunition.  According to the indictment, Madrid committed these crimes on July 31, 2015, in Chaves County, N.M.  At the time, Madrid was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of a narcotics trafficking crime.

During today’s proceedings, Madrid pled guilty to the indictment.  In entering the guilty plea, Madrid admitted that on July 31, 2015, law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at his home and seized methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine, which he intended to distribute to others.  Madrid also admitted that the agents seized multiple rounds of ammunition during the search, which he was prohibited from possessing because of his prior felony convictions.

This case was investigated by the Roswell office of the FBI, the New Mexico State Police and the Roswell Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy M. Castellano of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office prosecuted the case 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.  Working in partnership with Bernalillo County, the Albuquerque City Council, DEA, Healing Addiction in our Community (HAC) and other community stakeholders, HOPE’s principal goals are to protect our communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico. 

The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components:  (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning.  HOPE’s law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners.  Targeting members of major heroin and opioid trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative.  Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at http://www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.

Updated April 27, 2016

Topic
Drug Trafficking