Source: Office of United States Attorneys
ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced that Cisco Cruzito Pinto appeared in federal court on a criminal complaint charging him with aggravated sexual abuse in Indian Country. Pinto, 37, of Dulce, NM, will remain on conditions of release in the third-party custody of a halfway house pending trial, which has not yet been scheduled.
According to the criminal complaint, on Sept. 13, 2023, Pinto went out drinking in Pagosa Springs, CO with his wife before returning home. After his wife fell asleep, Pinto allegedly went into a bedroom where their 14-year-old niece, Jane Doe, was sleeping and sexually assaulted her. Jane Doe began to cry, and Pinto allegedly told her not to tell anyone otherwise he would hit her. When Pinto went to take a shower, Jane Doe told her aunt that Pinto had assaulted her. Jane Doe’s aunt called 911, and Jicarilla Apache Police Officers removed Pinto from the home.
A criminal complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted of the current charges, Pinto faces up to a mandatory minimum of 30 years and up to life in prison.
The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Jicarilla Apache Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meg Tomlinson is prosecuting the case.
# # #