New Mexico Mom Sentenced In Son's Brutal Death - The Associated Press
An Albuquerque mother who pleaded guilty in one of the state's most high-profile child abuse deaths has been sentenced to 40 years in prison.
An emotional Synthia Varela-Casaus was sentenced today in the 2013 kicking death of her 9-year-old son, Omaree, in a case that sparked a number of state reforms.
Last month, she pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and other charges.
An autopsy found Omaree died from severe internal bleeding caused by blunt-force trauma. Prosecutors say Omaree tried unsuccessfully to get help from authorities because of previous abuse.
Court records show that Varela-Casaus had initially told police her son fell from a toy spring horse.
Omaree's stepfather was sentenced in November after a jury found him guilty on charges that included tampering with evidence and acting with reckless disregard for not calling 911 sooner.
Priest On Lam From Sex Abuse Allegations Found In Morocco – Albuquerque Journal
A priest who faced sexual abuse allegations and disappeared from his parish in Albuquerque is working at a school in Morocco.
The Albuquerque Journal reports the attorney for a man who said he was abused by Arthur Perrault has served the priest a legal summons via mail and FedEx.
Years ago, another attorney filed two lawsuits against the Archdiocese of Santa Fe in 1992, just 11 days after Perrault boarded a plane for Canada, on behalf of seven people who said they were abused by Perrault.
Perrault was sent to a now-defunct facility in Jemez Springs for pedophile priests in 1966 from Hartford, Conn. He later served as a priest at several Albuquerque parishes and St. Pius High School.
Tribe: Navajo Code Talker Dies in New Mexico At Age 92 - The Associated Press
A Navajo Code Talker has died in New Mexico at age 92.
Navajo Nation officials announced Friday that Bill Henry Toledo died Thursday in Grants.
Toledo enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1942, helping use the Navajo language to outsmart the Japanese in World War II.
He served in the Pacific corridor during the war and spent three years as a Code Talker.
Toledo's daughter, Sharon Webb, says her father never disclosed he was a Code Talker until she and her mother discovered his honorary discharge papers in 1972.
Webb says her father was active in the Navajo Code Talker Association later in life.
Toledo also is survived by two grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Tribal officials say he will be buried Tuesday at the National Cemetery in Santa Fe.
Gathering Of Nations Organizers Slam University’s Decision – Albuquerque Journal
The founder of the Gathering of Nations powwow said his organization is appalled by a decision by the University of New Mexico to no longer host the event.
The Albuquerque Journal reports Derek Mathews released a statement through the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber, which helps promote the event. He criticized what he said was disrespect and disregard from the university.
The 33rd Gathering of Nations wrapped up last Saturday at The Pit. More than 100,000 spectators, artists and Native American dancers converged on Albuquerque for the nation’s largest powwow.
The event brings an estimated $20 million to the local economy according to the Hispano Chamber. But UNM still loses money after expenses, according to the Journal.
UNM officials said they tried to renegotiate the university’s contract with the Gathering of Nations last year. City officials are working with Mathews and the Hispano Chamber to find another venue.
Treasure Hunter's Disappearance Still A Mystery After Months – Associated Press
Fixated on computer screens and video monitors, an army of volunteers has been painstakingly reviewing hundreds of images and hours of footage recorded over the last four months, desperately hoping to find a single clue to the whereabouts of missing treasure hunter Randy Bilyeu.
The Colorado man disappeared in early January while searching for a $2 million cache of gold and jewels in northern New Mexico.
The recent discovery of a backpack on a rugged slope at Bandelier National Monument has re-energized the search for Bilyeu.
Based on what's inside, there's a strong indication the pack belonged to Bilyeu but authorities have yet to make an official determination.
As they wait for word, volunteers are focused on areas outside the monument. They launched a canoe trip down the Rio Grande on Thursday and a drone flight is planned this weekend.
Thursday marked four months since Bilyeu set out in his raft in search for the treasure. Ex-wife Linda Bilyeu says the family isn't giving up.
Blowing Dust Causes Freeway Closure Near Arizona Border – Associated Press
For the third time in two weeks, blowing dust has closed a 62-mile stretch of freeway near the Arizona-New Mexico border.
Arizona Department of Transportation officials on Thursday afternoon closed Interstate 10 between U.S 191 in southeastern Arizona and Lordsburg, New Mexico.
They say windy conditions have stirred up dust at a newly plowed field near San Simon, Arizona.
ADOT officials say the stretch of freeway will remain closed until visibility improves in the area.
That same 62-mile stretch was closed due to blowing dust and zero visibility on April 25 and 28.
The conditions triggered a three-vehicle crash involving two semitrailers about 15 miles from the New Mexico border on April 25 and three separate accidents involving 12 vehicles three days later.
Slain Girl's Schoolmates Will Run In Her Honor -The Associated Press
Schoolmates of an 11-year-old girl who was kidnapped and killed on the Navajo Nation this week are preparing to run roughly a mile in her honor as part of the Shiprock Marathon. School and race officials say about 75 students from Ojo Amarillo Elementary School will lead the first wave of 450 children in an honor run Friday evening.
State Police Investigating APD For Time-Card Fraud – Albuquerque Journal
The Albuquerque Police Department is under scrutiny for time-card fraud activity.
The Albuquerque Journal reports the New Mexico State Police is investigating the allegations and APD officials said they are also looking into possible time card fraud.
ABQ Free Press first reported the State Police investigation. This comes as the Attorney General is also looking into a contract APD awarded to Taser International for body cameras after the State Auditor found “clear violations” of state law.
The Albuquerque Police force is down by about 23 percent, according to the Journal. It’s working to implement reforms in the wake of a 2014 report from the U.S. Department of Justice that found the department had a pattern of violating people’s rights and a culture of aggression.
Grand Jury Indicts Former SWAIA Executive Director – Santa Fe New Mexican
The former executive director of the organization that organizes the Santa Fe Indian Market has been indicted on charges of embezzling funds raised for tsunami victims in Japan.
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports a grand jury charged John Torres Nez with a second-degree felony. He headed the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts. The charges focus on $37,000 raised through an auction of art donated by Native American artists.
Torres Nez, who now works in California, says he gave the money to the Red Cross and says financial records regarding the auction are stored in Santa Fe.
But an investigator with the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office said he kept the funds for himself.
Community Questions Delay In Amber Alert For Navajo Girl – Associated Press
Hundreds of mourners will gather Friday to remember an 11-year-old girl who was killed after being abducted along her school bus route on the Navajo Nation.
The funeral for Ashlynne Mike, a fifth-grader who lived with her father and siblings near the eastern edge of the nation's largest American Indian reservation, is set for Friday at 10 a.m. in Farmington, New Mexico. At community gatherings in recent days, her family has remembered her as a quiet girl who loved music and played the xylophone.
Her death has led her tribal community to demand improvements in how law enforcement responds to child abductions on the vast reservation.
More than 200 miles away, suspect Tom Begaye will appear before a federal judge on murder and kidnapping charges during a preliminary hearing in Albuquerque.
In New Mexico, Democrats And GOP Scrutinize Trump – Associated Press
Leading Democrats in New Mexico are taking aim at Donald Trump as the state's Republican governor withholds her full endorsement of the presumptive GOP nominee.
State Democratic lawmakers and party leaders gathered at an outdoor plaza Thursday in Albuquerque to highlight a disconnect they see between Trump's candidacy and New Mexico values. Both major parties are reaching out to constituents days before a registration deadline to vote in New Mexico's June 7 primary election.
Republican Gov. Susana Martinez won't indicate yet whether she will vote for Trump and says she first wants to hear how he plans to support national weapons laboratories and military bases in the state.
State Democratic Chairwoman Debra Haaland says Trump is unqualified and needs to be pressed on issues such as immigration and income inequality.
End Is In Sight For Gallup Diocese Bankruptcy Case – Gallup Independent, Associated Press
A bankruptcy judge in New Mexico has scheduled a confirmation hearing on the Diocese of Gallup's reorganization plan, signaling the possible end of a case that has spanned more than two years.
The Gallup Independent reports that attorneys for the diocese filed amended copies of the reorganization plan and a disclosure statement Tuesday. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge David T. Thuma scheduled the confirmation hearing for June 21.
Clergy sex abuse claimants will have to accept or reject the plan by June 10.
The abuse claimants have also been promised that they will be able to electronically access a read-only personnel file of their abuser. An attorney representing the claimants expressed concern that the provision will go away because the security details haven't yet been worked out.
Big Horn Sheep Spotted In Silver City – Silver City Sun-News, Associated Press
Residents of Silver City have spotted big horn sheep in the area, a rare event for the southern New Mexico city.
The Silver City Sun-News reports that New Mexico Department of Game and Fish Big Horn Biologist Eric Rominger says the sheep likely have made their way down from the Turkey Creek area due to predation.
Rominger says if the sheep are in fact from Turkey Creek, where mountain lion tracks were recently spotted, the 30 or so sheep in Silver City mean about 30 to 50 percent of the population left their usual habitat.
The Department of Game and Fish will allow the sheep to roam the city for a few weeks since lambs may be born soon. After, wildlife officials will likely capture and move them.