Albuquerque Man Pleads Guilty to Illegal Possession of Firearm in Santa Ana Pueblo

ALBUQUERQUE – Tobias Gutierrez, 35, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty this morning to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.  Under the terms of his plea agreement, Gutierrez will be sentenced to a prison term within the range of 30 to 60 months followed by not more than three years of supervised release.

Gutierrez was arrested on May 21, 2014, on a criminal complaint charging him with unlawfully possessing a firearm and ammunition on April 1, 2014 on Santa Ana Pueblo in Sandoval County, N.M.  At the time, Gutierrez was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because he previously had been convicted of numerous felony offenses including burglary, battery and possession of a controlled substance.
           
During today’s proceedings, Gutierrez admitted entering the Santa Ana Star Casino while carrying a revolver and five cartridges of ammunition on April 1, 2014.  Court filings reflect that while in the casino, Gutierrez took part in an altercation with a casino security officer who was attempting to disarm Gutierrez.  Gutierrez then dropped the revolver and was seen on surveillance video getting into a truck in the casino parking lot.  He was then pursued in the truck by Rio Rancho Police Department officers and subsequently crashed.  The officers then found Gutierrez hiding in the area near the vehicle crash, and he was later identified by officers of the Santa Ana Tribal Police Department as the armed suspect from the casino’s surveillance video.

Gutierrez has been in federal custody since his arrest and remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Santa Ana Police Tribal Department, the Corrales Police Department and the Rio Rancho Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Elaine Y. Ramirez is prosecuting this case.