A little over a week ago social media buzzed with news of a quarter horse nicknamed “Monte” that was reported stolen from TravelCenters of America truck stop at 3404 W. Highway 66.

Monte was found safe and sound June 1, one day after a thief rode off with him. And  as of press time, the alleged suspect is still at large.

TA video surveillance helped police to identify 18-year-old Wilbert Billy as the alleged horse-napper. Gallup Police Department issued an arrest warrant for Billy June 2. He’s wanted on one count of “larceny of livestock,” a third-degree felony.

According to the criminal complaint, the unfortunate incident occurred when horse transporter Steven Dyess...

Seasonal construction hiring kicking-in

New Mexico’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 6.7 percent in April 2017, the same as it was in March, but up from a 6.6 percent rate a year ago. The national unemployment rate was 4.4 percent, down from 4.5 percent in March and down from 5.0 percent in April 2016, according to information put out by the state Department of Work Force Solutions.

In McKinley County, the unemployment rate was 8.4 percent in April, which was lower than the 9.2 percent rate in March. In Cibola County, which is a 55-minute drive from McKinley County, the unemployment rate for April was 7.5 percent, compared to an 8.0 percent rate in March. The unemployment...

ALBUQUERQUE – Attorney General Hector Balderas announced June 6 that the Office of the Attorney General filed a lawsuit last night against national discount retail chain Dollar General for false advertising, unfair trade practices, and environmental public nuisance for the sale of obsolete motor oil in New Mexico stores from 2010 until February of this year. Dollar General has 87 stores located across New Mexico, including in rural and suburban communities, many of which are lower income.

“My office continues to aggressively protect hard working New Mexico families and vulnerable consumers by holding big corporations like Dollar General accountable for preying on them and lying...

ALBUQUERQUE – Cornelia Tom Tapaha, 41, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Shiprock, N.M., was sentenced June 7 in Santa Fe to 24 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release for her conviction on an assault charge.

Tapaha was arrested in June 2016, on an indictment charging her with assault with a dangerous weapon, a vehicle, and assault resulting in serious bodily injury. The indictment alleged that Tapaha committed the crimes on July 8, 2015, on the Navajo Indian Reservation in San Juan County, N.M.

A federal jury returned a verdict finding Tapaha guilty of assault and assault resulting in serious bodily injury on Dec. 12, 2016, after a five...