Carlsbad Woman Sentenced for Violating Federal Narcotics Trafficking Laws

ALBUQUERQUE — Monique Maurice Martinez, 35, of Carlsbad, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 84 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release for her methamphetamine trafficking conviction.

Martinez was charged in a criminal complaint on April 23, 2014, with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute in Eddy County, N.M., on March 18, 2014.  According to the complaint, agents with the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force executed a search warrant at Martinez’s residence where they seized approximately 174.6 grams of methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia and $2,015.00 in cash.  Martinez was subsequently indicted on the same charge on Nov. 12, 2014.

Martinez pled guilty to a felony information on July 1, 2015, and admitted that on March 18, 2014, she possessed 166.05 grams of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.  Martinez further admitted that the methamphetamine, which was in her purse, was discovered during the execution of a search warrant at her residence by the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force and the Carlsbad Police Department.

This case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA, the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force and the Carlsbad Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy M. Castellano of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office prosecuted the case.

The Pecos Valley Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office, Carlsbad Police Department and Artesia Police Department and is part of the HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force.  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.