Getting high in Colorado

4/22, Gallup

In what may be one of the few cases so far of a New Mexico resident being arrested for bringing into McKinley County marijuana he purchased legally in Colorado, a Ramah man is now facing drug charges in state court.

McKinley County Sheriff’s Dep. Brandon Salazar said he was driving south on U. S. 491 near the four-mile marker when he noticed the car in front of him cross the fog line twice.

He did a traffic stop and talked to the driver, identified as Richard Martin, 64. As he was explaining to Martin why he was being stopped, Salazar said he could smell what seemed to be marijuana coming from inside the vehicle.

He asked Martin where he...

McKinley County Sheriff’s Dep. Johnson Lee was traveling west on Highway 66 just before 1 am April 19 when he saw a speeding car and made what he thought would be a routine traffic stop.

Lee walked over and saw two men in the car. One of the two was shaking and appeared to be nervous, according to Lee’s report. As he came closer, the officer spotted a box of ammunition in the driver-side door.

Lee had the driver, Franklin Warren, 43, of Gamerco, step outside of the car while he issued a citation. Warren told Lee his license was suspended, and when the officer asked where the two men were headed, Warren said the Redwood Lodge, a nearby motel.

Warren continued to seem “very...

SANTA FE — A New Mexico State Police officer in Santa Fe was almost struck by a wrong-way driver on Cerrillos Road around 10:30 pm April 22. The officer attempted to stop the vehicle but the driver fled from the officer and a pursuit began.

As the pursuit approached the intersection of Cerrillos and Jaguar Roads, the officer was able to successfully perform a PIT maneuver and safely stop the vehicle.  The State Police officer suspected the driver was intoxicated and completed a DWI investigation. The driver, Santiago Garcia, 53, of Santa Fe, showed signs he was unable to safely operate a vehicle and was impaired.

Garcia was arrested for his 11th DWI.

Neither the officer nor the...

The FBI and the Navajo Nation Police Department are asking for the public’s assistance in finding a person of interest in a homicide that occurred at a residence in White Rock, UT on April 13.

Details of the homicide have not yet been released but FBI officials in Utah said they are searching for a Native American man between the ages of 40 and 50. He has black hair with grey spots and authorities said his hair is long on top with shaved sides.

The suspect was also wearing square framed transition lenses.

Authorities said the man might have been driving a four-door pickup believed to be a Ford with dark tinted windows. The license plate was described as having a light background with...