ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Devan Andrew Martinez, 34, of Albuquerque, was sentenced in federal court on May 5 to four years and three months in prison for being a felon in possession of firearms and ammunition. Martinez pleaded guilty on Oct. 12, 2021.
According to the plea agreement and other court records, on July 18, 2018, a law enforcement officer observed a vehicle parked inside a gated entrance to the Sedillo Range Unit on the south side of Interstate 40, which is on the Pueblo of Laguna. They did not have a title or bill of sale for the car, and the officer checked for a vehicle identification number. While checking the vehicle, the officer observed a loaded Taurus .45 caliber handgun on the floorboard under the front passenger seat.
After the officer found the firearm, Martinez and the other person were taken into custody. A search warrant was obtained for the vehicle and resulted in the discovery of nine rifles, four shotguns and two handguns, among other items including ammunition. In his plea, Martinez acknowledged that he knew that as a previously convicted felon he could not legally possess firearms or ammunition.
In the days prior to his arrest, Martinez went on a crime spree through communities west of Albuquerque, including the Pueblo of Laguna. He broke into a home, vehicles, a trailer, and gun safes to steal the fifteen firearms he possessed on July 18, 2018, as well as other personal effects. The State of New Mexico prosecuted Martinez for aggravated burglary (armed after entering), burglary of a vehicle, and residential burglary, all of which arose out of this crime spree. For those crimes, Martinez was sentenced to seven years in prison followed by five years of supervised probation. The sentence handed down today will be adjusted to account for time served for the state convictions. Because Martinez has been incarcerated since July of 2018, and accounting for this adjustment, his release from his federal term of imprisonment is forecast for October of this year.
Upon his release from prison, Martinez will be subject to three years of supervised release.
The Bureau of Indian Affairs investigated this case with assistance from the Laguna Pueblo Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander F. Flores is prosecuting the case.
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