Hobbs Man Sentenced to Ten Years in Federal Prison for Methamphetamine Drug Trafficking Conviction

ALBUQUERQUE – Clinton Leroy Skippings, 58, of Hobbs, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 120 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction.  The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Damon P. Martinez, 5^th Judicial District Attorney Janetta B. Hicks, Special Agent in Charge Will R. Glaspy of the DEA’s El Paso Field Division and Commander Byron Wester of the Lea County Drug Task Force (LCDTF).

Skippings was arrested on Dec. 18, 2013, on a criminal complaint charging him with possession methamphetamine and cocaine with intent to distribute in Lea County, N.M.  According to the complaint, on Oct. 10, 2013, LCDTF officers executed search warrants on Skippings, his residence and his vehicle, and seized quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana, more than $6,800.00 in cash, and packaging materials and other drug paraphernalia.

On Mar. 17, 2014, Skippings pled guilty to a felony information charging him with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.  Skippings admitted that when he was stopped by LCDTF officers on Oct. 10, 2013, he was in possession of methamphetamine and crack cocaine which he intended to sell to another person who unbeknownst to him was cooperating with law enforcement.  Skippings also admitted that on that same day, officers executed a search warrant at his residence and seized methamphetamine, cocaine and crack cocaine which he intended to distribute to others.

This case was investigated by the Lea County Drug Task Force, the Las Cruces office of the DEA and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Terri J. Abernathy of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.

The Lea County Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Lea County Sheriff’s Office, Hobbs Police Department, Lovington Police Department, Eunice Police Department the Tatum Police Department and the Jal Police Department, and is part of the NM 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.