Taos Pueblo man pleads guilty to sexual abuse of a minor

            ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Elliot Romancito, 27, of Taos, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Taos Pueblo, pleaded guilty in federal court on Nov. 3 to sexual abuse of a minor in Indian Country. Romancito was indicted on March 10, 2020.

            In his plea agreement, Romancito admitted that after a party on the night of Sept. 30, 2018, or in the early morning hours of Oct. 1, 2018, he drove to a location on the Taos Pueblo and engaged in a sexual act with the victim, identified in court records as Jane Doe. At the time of the abuse, Jane Doe was 15-years old.

            By the terms of the plea agreement, Romancito faces up to two years in prison and will be required to register as a sex offender.

            The Santa Fe Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Filed Office investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorneys David P. Cowen and Elisa Dimas are prosecuting this case.

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