Los Lunas Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Methamphetamine Trafficking Charge

ALBUQUERQUE – Joseph Baldonado, 30, of Los Lunas, N.M., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to a methamphetamine trafficking charge.  Under the terms of the plea agreement, Baldonado will be sentenced to 60 months in federal prison followed by four years of supervised release.

Baldonado was arrested in Jan. 2016, on a criminal complaint charging him with distribution of methamphetamine in Valencia County, N.M.  According to the complaint, Baldonado sold quantities of methamphetamine to an undercover agent on the following dates: 58.2 ounces on Jan. 6, 2016, 58.8 ounces on Jan. 12, 2016, and 57.2 ounces on Jan. 22, 2016.

Baldonado was subsequently indicted on Feb. 9, 2016, and charged with three counts of distribution of methamphetamine on Jan. 6, 12, and 22, 2016, in Valencia County. 

During today’s proceedings, Baldonado pled guilty to Count 3 of the indictment charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.  In entering the guilty plea, Baldonado admitted possessing more than 50 grams of methamphetamine on Jan. 22, 2016, and selling it to another person for $1,600.  Baldonado remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing which has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the DEA and the HIDTA Region I Narcotics Task Force and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eva M. Fontanez.

The HIDTA Region I Narcotics Task Force is comprised of the Albuquerque Police Department, Albuquerque office of the DEA, Pojoaque Tribal Police Department, Rio Rancho Police Department, Sandoval County Sheriff’s Office and the Valencia County Sheriff’s Office.  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.