EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – A convicted felon and reputed gang member who tried to dispose of 690 fentanyl pills during a police foot chase has pleaded guilty to drug and weapons charges.
Jaime Lopez, a member of the Cruces Boys, acknowledged he was in possession of the fentanyl and intended to distribute it when members of a drug task force arrested him in Las Cruces last May.
He also admitted to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition at the time of his arrest, according to documents filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.
In exchange, prosecutors will be dropping additional charges and seeking penalties of 84 to 108 months in prison for Lopez (six to nine years), records show. The maximum term he previously faced for the offenses was 15 and 20 years in prison.
Members of the FBI Southern New Mexico Safe Streets Gang Task Force on May 21, 2024, tried to serve a search warrant on Lopez in connection with drug trafficking offenses. But Lopez fled when Las Cruces Metro Narcotics agents working with the FBI made a traffic stop, court documents show.
Three hours later, investigators located the vehicle in the parking lot of a business in Las Cruces and again tried to take the suspect into custody. Lopez ran off and threw a bag of blue-colored “M-30” pills that later tested to be fentanyl, records show.
Agents arrested Lopez and found a 9mm gun in his vehicle.
A federal complaint affidavit alleged Lopez told investigators he fled law enforcement because he had a pending arrest warrant, he threw the pills because he didn’t want to be charged with drug offenses and that he kept a gun to protect himself from former associates from Juarez, Mexico.
Records show Lopez was charged in 2005 and later convicted of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit second-degree murder.
As part of the plea agreement, Lopez agreed to forfeit the Canik Arms 9mm pistol and 15 rounds of ammunition.
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