ALBUQUERQUE - Jose Tiburcio Hernandez-Aguilar, 57, a Mexican national, made his initial appearance today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., on a criminal complaint charging him with violating the federal narcotics trafficking laws. Hernandez-Aguilar remains in custody pending a preliminary hearing and a detention hearing which have yet to be scheduled.
Hernandez-Aguilar was arrested on Feb. 20, 2016, by the U.S. Border Patrol and the DEA for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute in Doña Ana County, N.M. The criminal complaint alleges that on that day, U.S. Border Patrol Agents allegedly found 14 bundles of methamphetamine weighing approximately 3.62 kilograms (eight pounds) in a hidden compartment in Hernandez-Aguilar’s vehicle.
If convicted of the crime charged in the criminal complaint, Hernadez-Aguilar faces a statutory minimum of ten years and a maximum of life in federal prison. Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations. All criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Border Patrol and the Las Cruces office of the DEA and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Luis Martinez of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
