California man sentenced to 21 months in prison for assaulting federal officers

            ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Ivan Allen, 40, of Moreno Valley, California, was sentenced on May 17 in federal court to 21 months in prison for assaulting federal officers. Allen was indicted on April 24, 2019, and pleaded guilty on Nov. 14, 2019.

            Allen, who is non-Indian, assaulted two officers of the Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Police Department, who are commissioned as Special Law Enforcement Officers by the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Office of Justice Services. Allen committed the offense on March 26, 2019, on the Pueblo of Laguna in Cibola County, New Mexico.

            In his plea agreement, Allen admitted that on March 26, 2019, he was driving eastbound on Interstate 40 at a high rate of speed with the headlights of his vehicle off.  An officer with the Pueblo of Acoma Police Department attempted to conduct a traffic stop, but Allen increased his speed and fled.  Allen hit a concrete barrier and two officers with the Pueblo of Laguna Police Department responded to the scene.  The officers used their public address system to command Allen to step out of his vehicle, which he initially ignored.  Eventually, Allen complied with the officers’ commands.  Upon reaching one of the police vehicles, Allen stiffened and fell backward onto the vehicle.  When the officers approached Allen to render assistance, Allen began to fight the officers. After almost ten minutes of resistance, Allen was subdued and arrested.

            Upon his release from prison, Allen will be subject to three years of supervised release.

            The FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Pueblo of Laguna Tribal Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Raquel Ruiz-Velez and Kyle T. Nayback prosecuted the case.