ALBUQUERQUE - Joe J. Zambrano, 54, of Albuquerque, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court to a misdemeanor charge of assaulting, resisting and impeding federal officers in the performance of their official duties.
Zambrano was charged in a criminal complaint with assaulting, resisting, or impeding federal officers, and providing false information to law enforcement officers on Jan. 15, 2017, in Bernalillo County, N.M. According to the criminal complaint, on Jan. 15, 2017, Zambrano attempted to use his vehicle as a weapon against Park Rangers of the National Park Service during a routine traffic stop within the Petroglyph National Monument. Zambrano then provided a false name, birthdate and social security number to the Park Rangers in response to their request for Zambrano’s identification information.
Zambrano subsequently was charged by a misdemeanor information on Jan. 18, 2017, with assaulting, resisting and impeding a federal officer. During today’s proceedings, Zambrano pled guilty to the information. and admitted that on Jan. 15, 2017, he nearly struck a Park Ranger with his vehicle while attempting to flee from two Park Rangers. Zambrano further admitted that he ignored the Park Rangers’ verbal commands that he stop his vehicle.
Zambrano remains in federal custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. At sentencing, Zambrano faces a maximum statutory penalty of a year of imprisonment.
This case was investigated by the National Park Service and was prosecuted
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
