ALBUQUERQUE - Victor Hernandez-Pena, 24, a Mexican national illegally in the United States, was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 120 months in prison for violating federal firearms and drug trafficking laws. Hernandez-Pena will be deported after completing his prison sentence.
Hernandez-Pena was arrested on April 2, 2015, on a criminal complaint charging him with distribution of methamphetamine in Bernalillo County, N.M. According to the complaint, on March 24, 2015, Hernandez-Pena sold approximately 55 grams of methamphetamine to an individual working with law enforcement officers.
Hernandez-Pena was indicted on a methamphetamine distribution charge on April 28, 2015, and charged with distributing methamphetamine. The indictment was superseded twice, most recently on Oct. 25, 2016. The five-count second superseding indictment charged Hernandez-Pena with distributing methamphetamine on March 4, 2015 and March 24, 2015; possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute on April 2, 2015; and being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm and ammunition on April 2, 2015 and Nov. 10, 2014. According to court documents, the Nov. 10, 2014, charge arose out of an incident during which Hernandez-Pena hit a woman with a firearm, which caused the firearm to discharge and injure the victim when the bullet grazed her head. According to the second superseding indictment, Hernandez-Pena committed the crimes in Bernalillo County.
On Nov. 11, 2016, Hernandez-Pena pled guilty to the second superseding indictment. In entering the guilty plea, Hernandez-Pena admitted selling methamphetamine to an individual he later learned was working with law enforcement authorities on two occasions in March 2015. More specifically, he admitted selling 2.65 grams of methamphetamine on March 4, 2015, and 51.7 grams of methamphetamine on March 24, 2015. Hernandez-Pena also admitted that on April 2, 2015, he possessed 208.2 grams of methamphetamine, which he intended to distribute to others. He also admitted that on April 2, 2015, he possessed a firearm and ammunition at that same residence. According to the plea agreement, on Nov. 10, 2014, Hernandez-Pena also possessed a handgun and ammunition while sitting in the parking lot of an Albuquerque-area restaurant.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of Homeland Security Investigations and the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristopher N. Houghton and Peter J. Eicker prosecuted the case.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
