Toadlena Man Charged with Failing to Update Sex Offender Registration

ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced that Anthony Brian Manuelito appeared in federal court on an indictment charging him with failure to update sex offender registration in violation of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). Manuelito, 46, of Toadlena, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, will remain in custody pending an arraignment and detention hearing scheduled for December 15, 2023.

According to the indictment, from on or about May 5, 2019, continuing to on or about December 5, 2023, Manuelito, a person required to register under the sex offender registration and notification act, by reason of a conviction under federal law, knowingly failed to update a registration.

SORNA, also known as the Adam Walsh Protection and Safety Act, requires that a convicted sex offender register in each jurisdiction where the offender resides, where the offender is employed, or where the offender is a student, and that the sex offender maintain current registrations.

An indictment is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Manuelito faces up to 10 years in prison.

The United States Marshal Service investigated this case with the assistance of the Navajo Police Department and Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meg Tomlinson is prosecuting the case.

# # #

23-285