Case Prosecuted as Part of HOPE Initiative which Seeks to Reduce the Number of Opioid-Related Deaths in New Mexico
ALBUQUERQUE - Juan Francisco Cruz-Neri, 23, of Mexico City, Mexico, made his initial appearance today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., on a criminal complaint charging him with possessing almost four pounds of heroin with intent to distribute. Cruz-Neri remains in federal custody pending a preliminary hearing and a detention hearing scheduled for April 19, 2016.
Cruz-Neri was arrested at the Greyhound Bus Station in Albuquerque on April 15, 2016, after the DEA allegedly found 1.70 kilograms (3.80 pounds) of heroin concealed in his backpack.
If convicted of the charge in the criminal complaint, Cruz-Neri faces a statutory penalty of a mandatory minimum of ten years and a maximum of life in federal prison. Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the DEA. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rumaldo Armijo as part of the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic which has had a disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico. Opioid addiction has taken a toll on public safety, public health and the economic viability of our communities. Working in partnership with Bernalillo County, the Albuquerque City Council, DEA, Healing Addiction in our Community (HAC) and other community stakeholders, HOPE’s principal goals are to protect our communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico.
The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. HOPE’s law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners. Targeting members of major heroin and opioid trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative. Learn more about the New Mexico HOPE Initiative at http://www.HopeInitiativeNM.org.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
