Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)
ALBUQUERQUE – Federal law enforcement arrested two Albuquerque men on Tuesday after executing search warrants that uncovered a significant cache of weapons, drugs, and evidence of an ongoing drug trafficking operation linked to the Cibola County Correctional Center.
According to court records, Michael “Gomer” Ernest Garcia, 46, was arrested on outstanding federal and state warrants. A second man, Eric Edwards, 36, was taken into custody on a state warrant.
Garcia was the final defendant sought in connection with an investigation into a conspiracy involving both incarcerated and non-incarcerated individuals who formed a drug trafficking network that was introducing contraband into the Cibola County Correctional Center in Milan, NM.
During the operation, authorities seized weapons and illegal substances from Garcia’s residence, including:
- Sixteen firearms, among them one pistol with a machine gun conversion device, five AR-15 rifles, two AR-15 pistols, and one AK-47 rifle
- More than two dozen high-capacity magazines
- Hundreds of rounds of ammunition in various calibers
- Controlled substances including methamphetamine and heroin
Garcia had been evading law enforcement for over two years and was featured on the “METRO 15” wanted poster.
U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez, Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, and David Barnett, U.S. Marshal for the District of New Mexico, made the announcement today.
The FBI Albuquerque Division Violent Gang Task Force (VGTF) and United States Marshals Service jointly investigated this case with assistance from the CoreCivic Intelligence Unit and the New Mexico State Police. Assistant United States Attorneys Paul Mysliwiec and David Hirsch are prosecuting the case.
The VGTF is an FBI led task force comprising of agents and officers from the New Mexico State Police, Rio Rancho Police Department, Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, and the Albuquerque Police Department.
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