LOGAN, N.M. (KRQE) –  Ask anyone in eastern New Mexico about the devious fraud scheme that impacted scores of victims in places like Logan, San Jon or Tucumcari and folks will give you an earful. At the center of this underhanded swindle is a fugitive sex offender and, behind the scenes, a popular elected official.

“It’s outrageous. It’s one of the most egregious cases that I’ve been made aware of,” Regulation and Licensing Superintendent Mike Unthank said.

The individual losses are staggering.

“I worked hard all my life for what I’ve got. He just took about $2,500 from me,” said Logan retiree Randy Hargrove.

Logan businessman Barry Phillips lost $4,200.

Roswell retirees John and Beverly Burson lost more than $5,000.

Marlin Terry in San Jon is out almost $20,000.

The mastermind behind this clever con game is a local handyman named John Harley.

Harley showed up in the Logan area of eastern New Mexico a few years back. He was friendly, well-liked and often hung out at nearby Ute Lake. Harley was a handyman by trade. In Quay and Union county John Harley was known as the go-to-guy for heating and air conditioning problems.

John Harley peddled more than 50 furnace and air conditioning units in small communities throughout eastern New Mexico. He installed expensive equipment in residential properties, businesses, churches, government buildings as well as fraternal and civic organizations.

However, according to RLD Superintendent Unthank not one of Harley’s installations was proper and, Unthank added, Harley had “absolutely no qualifications whatsoever” to do furnace installations.

Retired banker John Burson and his wife Beverly hired John Harley to install a furnace in their Logan summer house which is a mobile home.

“It was actually sucking carbon monoxide into the bedroom which was pretty scary,” said Beverly Burson.

Months after Harley had completed the work, the Bursons discovered their $5,000 furnace installation was not only shoddy and illegal, it was downright dangerous.

Besides being improperly vented, the gas furnace Harley installed was not designed to be used in a mobile home. Last year, a State Gas Inspector took one look at the Burson’s newly installed furnace and red tagged it.

“He said it was the worst installation he had ever seen,” John said. “He said we’re lucky to be alive.”

“He said if we would have been up there in the wintertime we would not be alive,” Beverly added.

The Bursons had to remove the $5,000 furnace and buy a new one. By this time, however, John Harley had disappeared.

“I’m real mad for the loss of the money but more than that he put our lives in danger. He has no respect for human life,” John said.

Logan businessman Barry Phillips also feels cheated. On the recommendation of a friend, Phillips hired John Harley to install a $4,200 electrical heating and air conditioning unit at his wife’s accounting business. The installation was a disaster.

“My building could have burned down. Somebody could have gotten electrocuted. The wiring was absolutely a mess. The Freon leaks were a mess. It was totally inadequate,” Phillips said.

Logan retiree Randy Hargrove lost some $2,500 after John Harley illegally installed a full-size gas furnace in Hargrove’s mobile home. The furnace installation violated the state’s building code.

“He had it vented completely wrong. The drain line wasn’t hooked up underneath. The water in the air conditioner was running under my trailer instead of out. And, there was no place to put a filter,” Hargrove said.

By the time Randy discovered the problems John Harley had already skipped town. Randy had to remove the faulty installation and buy a new furnace.

San Jon businessman Marlin Terry’s loss was close to $20,000 after he hired John Harley to install four furnaces in several area properties.

“When the L P gas people (inspected) they said the heater was improperly installed. It was sucking carbon monoxide back into the home instead of going on out through the roof,” Terry said.

Today, the four furnace units Marlin bought from John Harley sit in storage.

After a state investigation, RLD Superintendent Unthank commented on John Harley’s heating and air conditioning expertise.

“Totally incompetent and the incompetency is based upon the fact that our inspection team has looked at a number of these installations and the errors that have been made in those installations lead us absolutely to believe (John Harley) had no idea what (he was) doing,” Unthank said.

In fact, New Mexico’s ‘flim-flam furnace man’ is not only a fraud, he’s also a fugitive. A KRQE News 13 investigation finds John Harley doesn’t have a contractor’s license. He doesn’t even have a driver’s license. What he does have however is a 1990 felony conviction for sexual battery in Tennessee. After failing to register as a sex offender in Tennessee, Harley disappeared years ago. He has been on the run ever since. Lately, he’s been hiding out in Quay County.

Besides bilking dozens upon dozens of area homeowners, John Harley cheated the Amistad Church in Amistad, New Mexico, the House Baptist Church in House, New Mexico, the San Jon Assembly of God in San Jon, New Mexico, the Logan Church of Christ in Logan, New Mexico, even the American Legion Hall in Logan.

And John Harley did not act alone. He had an accomplice: Logan Mayor David Babb. That’s right, one of Logan’s most respected citizens was John Harley’s silent business partner.

“Our citizens have been put at significant risk by unethical activity both on the part of, I hate to say it, Mayor Babb and an unlicensed person, (John Harley),” Unthank said.

According to a state investigation, Babb, who is a licensed electrical contractor purchased some 50 gas furnaces directly from the manufacturer and then handed them to Harley for installation.

“That’s clearly a violation of the Construction Industries Licensing Act. In my opinion, also a form of fraud because he’s leading unsuspecting citizens to think he’s qualified to do those purchases,” Unthank said.

When Mayor Babb bungled the installation of a gas furnace at the Nixon Ranch outside Nara Visa, New Mexico, he cheated the owners out of $1,700. And, when Logan’s City Hall, Fire Department, Senior Center and Medical Clinic ended up with illegal furnace installations, the Mayor now admits he was involved.

RLD Superintendent Unthank calls Harley and Babb’s scheme involving the illegal installation of furnaces, “Outrageous.”

Mayor David Babb says John Harley was a “fishing buddy.” The Mayor says he was duped and admits he used poor judgment. But he says, he’s not a crook.

Babb told KRQE News 13 John Harley was an ‘acquaintance’ he met at the lake. Babb says he did not know Harley’s background but admits he knew Harley was not licensed to do gas installations.

Babb told KRQE News 13, “I’ve been here 30 years. It was not a deliberate act. It wasn’t intended to hurt anybody.”

Last week, the New Mexico Construction Industries Commission initiated formal proceedings seeking to revoke David Babb’s electrical contractor’s license for alleged violations of the Construction Industries Licensing Act.

Last summer, John Harley disappeared again to avoid a one-year jail sentence. Harley was convicted in a Union County Court for contracting without a license.

An arrest warrant has been issued for Harley who is believed to be hiding somewhere in the Midwest.

The Construction Industries Division has now referred the case to the New Mexico State Police for a criminal investigation.

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – January 21, 2015. A state government attorney sends an urgent email to the Governor’s legal staff.

“There is a very important matter regarding a contract … that I need to discuss with you. If I sign that document, it will create an appearance of impropriety to Governor Susana Martinez’ administration (e)specially if Larry Barker gets ahold of the information.”

Guess what? I’ve got the information. What’s in the documents? Well, as scandals go this one’s a doozie. It involves a million dollars in state and federal funding, sweetheart deals, and abuse of power.

The focus is on an obscure state agency hidden away in Santa Fe. The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, or DVR, provides counseling and financial assistance to the state’s disabled population.

Behind the scenes, however, DVR is a troubled agency. The ‘trouble’ relates to a million dollars in contracts that were not handled by the book. It’s a messy situation that insiders call ‘bizarre,’ ‘outrageous,’ even ‘illegal.’ But ask top bureaucrats about it and you’ll get a blank stare.

“I’m very comfortable with what’s happened,” says Paul Aguilar, the Public Education Department’s Deputy Secretary.

“I am not aware of any improprieties,” says DVR Director Joe Cordova.

In fact, a KRQE News 13 investigation finds DVR managers have been repeatedly warned about wrongdoing at the agency. Red flags were raised by DVR Legal Counsel Rosa Lima, DVR Assistant Legal Counsel Mel Savarese, DVR’s then Chief Financial Officer Veronica DeLeon-Dowd and DVR’s then Interim Director Annette Ortega.

It started when DVR wanted to hire, on contract, a Veteran’s Outreach Coordinator. DVR wanted someone who could locate disabled veterans and get them to come to one of the DVR offices and apply for services. DVR issued a “Request For Proposal” to invite prospective bidders to apply for the Veteran’s Outreach job.

To qualify for the Veteran’s Outreach Coordinator, applicants did not need any experience, education or training. In fact, the only qualification for the contract was that applicants be a veteran.

An unemployed Santa Fe man named Clarence Gallegos was the only bidder. Even though Clarence’s wife, Eileen Marrujo-Gallegos, was a manager at the Public Education Department (which oversees DVR), Gallegos was awarded a lucrative four-month contract to do Veteran’s Outreach.

DVR paid Gallegos $38,947 for the four-month job which was billed at $90 an hour to locate veterans with disabilities and assist them in applying for services to the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation. Gallegos billed the state for meeting with veterans, handing out business cards and doing administrative work. Much of his time was spent posting flyers in post offices, bars, liquor stores, a motorcycle shop, and fraternal organizations.

Gallegos failed to comply with the terms of the four-month contract by not holding a minimum of two town hall meetings. However, in July 2015, someone at DVR decided to pump another $108,000 into his pocket with a new contract. Because the new contract (for the 2016 fiscal year) was not put out for competitive bid, it was in apparent violation of the state’s procurement law.

This time Clarence Gallegos billed the state $56.35 an hour which is more than twice what DVR’s own rehabilitation counselors are paid. In fact, a man with no college degree, experience, or training earned more than DVR’s Director Joe Cordova, more than Attorney General Hector Balderas and even more than Governor Martinez.

Last year, DVR put the Outreach Coordinator job up for bid for the 2017 fiscal year. This time there were two bidders, Clarence Gallegos and a fired state cop named Jason Griego. DVR awarded each man $433,444 contracts to be paid out over four years.

According to DVR Director Joe Cordova, “That’s not a lot of money compared to what we do in general in Vocational Rehabilitation Services.”

DVR Attorney Rosa Lima refused to sign off on the contracts because, she said, they did not comply with the law.

“I was not comfortable with all those violations to sign a contract that could cause problems … in the future,” Lima said.

After Lima refused to authorize the contracts, she was sent home on paid Administrative Leave. That was in August last year. She remains on paid leave today. DVR’s Director Joe Cordova would not comment on Lima’s leave citing personnel rules. Lima says the action was retaliation for not signing the contracts.

With Lima gone, Joe Cordova found another lawyer willing to sign off on the contracts.

However, shortly before cashing in on his latest sweet deal, in October, Clarence Gallegos ended up in jail. Albuquerque Police officers were called to a local bar after Gallegos became belligerent and caused a disturbance. When he refused to leave the premises he was arrested for criminal trespass. The case later dismissed.

Clarence Gallegos and Jason Griego will each collect through fiscal year 2020 about $108,000 a year to do veteran’s outreach.

Following whistleblower complaints about apparent mishandling of the contracts, DVR Assistant General Counsel Melchior Savarese was asked to make a legal review. In a 17-page memorandum, Savarese found numerous legal problems.

Savarese wrote, “The issues discovered are irregularities and red flags that are problematic and raise more questions than they do suitable answers… It is the NMDVR legal opinion that these contracts are presently legally insufficient under the Procurement code and (state law).”

Savarese’s said it was DVR’s legal recommendation, “…not to proceed with the contracts.”

That legal advice was ignored. DVR Director Joe Cordova said Savarese’s legal conclusion was “wrong.”

Deputy Secretary Paul Aguilar also says Savarese got it wrong.

“I don’t believe (the legal memo was) particularly well-written and I don’t believe that the basis of it was all that that well documented,” Aguilar said.

The Deputy Secretary told KRQE News 13 another lawyer’s review found no problems with the contracts.

“It’s like wow, what are they doing over there,” said former DVR Deputy Director Andy Winnegar.

“Why did they do that?” Winnegar asked. “Basically what they are doing is putting up posters and going out and identifying individuals that can go over to a DVR office. That’s what you would pay about $15 an hour for not $90 an hour.”

“It’s incredible that these contracts would have been let in the first place,” said Senator Jerry Ortiz y Pino, who chairs the Senate Public Affairs Committee.

“Two individuals without any particular credentials or anything to recommend them, to get these plums for four years? This is a much better paying job than many state employees would ever hope to achieve,” Senator Ortiz y Pino said after reviewing KRQE News 13’s documentation.

Former State Senator Dede Feldman commented, “This is a hell of a way to run a railroad.” Feldman today is an outspoken advocate for governmental accountability.

“The department was repeatedly told not to enter into this contract by its legal counsel and they did not heed that warning,” Feldman said. “I would hate to see the clients of this agency be penalized for the kind of inefficiency and questionable contracting procedures that the DVR seems to be using here,” the former State Senator told KRQE News 13.

To date, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation has awarded contracts totaling $1,000,000 for veteran’s outreach. Those federal and state dollars come from the same funding that provides services to DVR’s disabled clients.

To find out more about the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation and their services click here »

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) — There’s trouble brewing behind prison walls. It’s dangerous, disturbing and costly.

A five-month KRQE News 13 investigation finds New Mexico’s prison system in the danger zone. The issue relates to under staffing. Department of Correction’s records show state officials have failed to hire enough Correctional Officers to control inmates or keep our prisons and the public safe. Over the last two years, taxpayers have shelled out tens of millions of dollars to compensate for inadequate staffing at all New Mexico prison facilities across the state.

“We’re just a time bomb waiting to happen and it needs to be addressed,” says State Senator Howie Morales.

State Senator Sander Rue told KRQE News 13, “It is a terrible situation and the harm is, eventually, something’s going to happen. Something’s going to snap.”

According to the American Correctional Association, which accredits prison facilities, Correctional Officer vacancy rates in prison facilities should “…not exceed 10 percent for any 18-month period.” In New Mexico, only two of the state’s 11 prison facilities come even close to the national standard.

For example, the maximum security State Penitentiary in Santa Fe is so short-staffed that routinely as many as 29 percent of the Correctional Officer positions there are vacant.

In December, at the medium security Central Prison in Los Lunas, 34 percent of the Correctional Officer positions were vacant which is more than three times the national standard.

In July last year, more than half of the Correctional Officer jobs at the Western New Mexico Correctional Facility in Grants went unfilled.

At the State Prison in Roswell last December, Correctional Officer vacancies reached 58 percent.

In July 2015, a whopping 70 percent of the Correctional Officer positions were vacant at the State Prison facility in Springer.

Newly named Correction’s Cabinet Secretary David Jablonski says these C.O. vacancy rates are “absolutely” unacceptable.

“These are minimum standards to ensure the safety and security and efficient operation of our prisons,” said Santa Fe attorney Mark Donatelli.

Donatelli led the 1980 Riot Defense Team. He is considered an expert on prison reform issues.

“If these standards aren’t met people are going to get hurt. It’s just that simple,” Donatelli said. “If 70 percent of the police officers in Albuquerque didn’t show up one day what would they think would happen? They’re here for a reason. This is supposed to be what we need to ensure reasonable safety and security in the community.”

New Mexico’s privately owned prisons don’t fare any better. In fact, private prisons must pay significant penalties if they fail to maintain minimum staffing levels.

Over the last two years, the Lea County Correctional Facility (GEO Group, Inc.) in Hobbs has shelled out $871,918 in penalties for not hiring the required number of security officers.

Since 2015, the Northwest New Mexico Correctional Facility (Core Civic, Inc.) in Grants has paid $546,405 in monthly staffing penalties.

Since 2012, the five private prisons in New Mexico have paid the state a total of $5,674,848 for failure to maintain required staffing levels.

“All (five private prisons) have been penalized at some point during the fiscal year for lack of staffing,” said Correction’s Secretary Jablonski.

The failure to hire adequate security staff is having a major impact on the Correction’s Department’s budget. In order to maintain proper security at state prisons, minimum staffing levels are required. To compensate for all the vacant Correctional Officer positions, existing staff must fill those positions.

KRQE News 13’s investigation finds, since 2015, Correctional Officer overtime at state prisons has cost taxpayers $31,616,074. Many of the state’s Correctional Officers are required to work 16 hour days, every day. Some C.O.’s have been ordered to work 24-hour shifts.

“Understaffing was a significant cause of the riot,” Mark Donatelli says. “It was very easy for the prisoners to take over the entire prison with so few Correctional Officers on duty.”

Rob Trombley who is the Public Safety Coordinator for AFSCME Council 18, says the job of a Correction’s Officer is a thankless job.

“It’s long hours. Lots of overtime. It’s a very dangerous job,” Trombley said. “They’re responsible for the worst of the worst in the state. The folks that kill cops, the folks that hurt people, rob your house, those are the folks that are in prison.”

Understaffed and overworked prison security is a recipe for disaster. Case in point? The Guadalupe County Correctional Facility in Santa Rosa. In September 1999, during an uprising there, inmates ambushed Officer Ralph Garcia and stabbed him to death. Last year an officer was stabbed by an inmate at the private prison in Clayton. In October an officer was attacked and suffered an eye injury at another state prison facility. The list of escapes, assaults and injuries goes on and on.

“You’re risking your life pretty much. Anything can happen at any time,” says Lee Ortega who is the AFSCME Local 3422 State President.

“It’s not a safe place. The public isn’t safe. The prison system is not safe. That staff is not safe and neither are the inmates,” says one long time C.O. working at Central Prison in Los Lunas.

Another Central Prison Correctional Officer comments, “It gets scary. Scary knowing you might not make it home to your family that night.”

So why is it so hard to find people willing to work in a prison? For starters, it’s one of the lowest paying public safety jobs in New Mexico. In fact, fitness trainers, garbage collectors, even estheticians earn more than trained and certified Correction’s Officers.

“They’re competing with McDonald’s, Burger King and Wal-Mart for jobs,” says AFSCME’s Rob Trombley. “You can go work at McDonald’s, you’re going to deal with the public, they’re not violent for the same pay, almost, as you could work in state corrections,” Trombley said.

State Senator Sander Rue says, “If I was a Correction’s Officer in one of those facilities I wouldn’t want to go to work. I wouldn’t want to put myself in that facility in harm’s way like that.”

“We’re putting people’s lives at risk on a daily basis,” State Senator Howie Morales says. “We shouldn’t have to wait for a tragedy to take place, a life to be lost or a riot to happen for us to take action.”

But providing better pay and working conditions for state Correctional Officers is a hard sell in the legislature.

“Out of sight out of mind,” Rob Trombley said. “They want to catch the bad guys. They want to prosecute them. But, I believe folks think that they just go away after that. And that’s the job of the Correctional Officer, out of sight out of mind.”

Correction’s Secretary David Jablonski says he will make this issue a number one priority. “I think it’s something that I’m going to have to address as the leader of this department and we’re going to do everything we can to get on those vacancy numbers. They’re just too high and unacceptable,” Secretary Jablonski says.

Prison reform expert Donatelli says, “Having done this since the 70s I see that people only pay attention when Correctional Officers are hurt, prisoners are killed, or people escape and hurt people in the community. We shouldn’t have to wait for those incidents to address this problem.”

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – It was the vacation of a lifetime touted as an extraordinary week of golf and friendship: Fly to Scotland. Hob-nob with the Lobos. Stay at five-star hotels. And, play golf on the most iconic golf courses in the world.

That was the pitch made in 2015 by Anthony Travel, an Indiana travel agency. For $8,189 per person you join University of New Mexico Athletic Director Paul Krebs and Basketball Coach Craig Neal for a week long golfing holiday in Scotland. The hefty price tag included six nights in luxury hotels (including the Turnberry Resort Lodges at Turnberry), meals, and five rounds of golf at championship courses such as the St. Andrews Jubilee Course and the Royal Troon Golf Club.

Twenty-three participants signed up for the June 2015 golfing holiday. The group included Paul Krebs, his son, wife, his in-laws, Craig Neal and his wife along with a number of loyal Lobo boosters and fans.

However, there’s a dark secret behind that golfing holiday two years ago. A KRQE News 13 investigation finds UNM’s Athletic Department quietly picked up the tab for university big shots to go on the international golf junket. Nobody seemed to notice when the Athletic Department doled out tens of thousands of dollars for airfare to Scotland, travel agency fees, luxury hotels, and rounds of golf at legacy golf courses.

“It doesn’t look good that the university spent money to go … to Scotland for a golf trip,” UNM interim President Chaouki Abdallah said.

According to UNM Athletic Department records, Paul Krebs’ golf excursion cost the university $9,379 which included international airfare. UNM picked up Craig Neal’s tab as well which cost $8,189. Coach Neal paid his own airfare.

UNM Foundation Development Office employee Kole McKamey also tagged along at public expense on the Scotland Golf tour. The university paid $8,189 for McKamey’s golf, hotel, and meals. The

UNM Foundation paid McKamey’s airfare and the Lobo Club chipped in for some incidental expenses. McKamey told KRQE News 13 the Scotland trip was not a vacation but rather an assigned business trip. He says he went to Scotland to promote private philanthropy among the trip participants.

The Athletic Department also shelled out another $13,625 to Anthony Travel in penalty fees because the trip failed to attract enough participants. When you add it all up UNM spent $39,382 for university officials to go on a Scottish golfing holiday.

“I saw this as an appropriate use of university money to generate support for athletics,” UNM Athletic Director Paul Krebs said.

Krebs told KRQE News 13 the Scotland golf tour was not a vacation but rather a working business trip. He said Craig Neal, Kole McKamey and himself went along as fundraisers, using the relaxed social setting of the golf course to drum up donor support for athletic programs.

“The intent was to appeal to a small group of people and use this as a forum to raise money for local athletics,” Krebs said.

“It’s something that was given great thought and consideration. (It was) modeled after what other universities have done. The goal was to use it as a fundraiser and to generate a return on investment and I think we’ve done that,” Krebs adds.

But that’s the rub. You see UNM cannot use public money for fundraising activities. University fundraising is the sole responsibility of the UNM Foundation, which is a private non-profit organization.

President Abdallah says the Athletic Department’s use of public money to raise funds was inappropriate. So why didn’t the UNM Foundation pick up the $39,000 tab for the golfing holiday? We don’t know. Foundation President Henry Nemcik did not respond to several requests for comment.

The trip took place in June 2015. However, the financial irregularities weren’t discovered for two years. A close look at the Athletic Department’s transaction log gives a clue. The Scotland golf expenditures were listed on the log as a “men’s basketball tournament” in Ireland.

“Clearly it was simply a mistake,” Paul Krebs said. When asked if the Scotland trip was mischaracterized, the Athletic Director said, “I’m not sure that it was mischaracterized. It was the basketball coach and myself going on a trip overseas. It was misidentified there and that was simply a clerical mistake.”

“I don’t believe it is an appropriate use of university funds,” says State Representative Jim Dines (R–Albuquerque) who serves on the House Education Committee.

“The students’ interest needs to be looked at closer versus the administration’s interest,” Rep. Dines said. “When we’ve desperately got the need for monies for higher education, $40,000 is a large amount of money that could have been used for furthering some student’s education,” according to Dines.

Paul Krebs’ annual compensation exceeds $400,000. KRQE News 13 asked the Athletic Director why he didn’t pay for the pricey golf trip himself?

“We were acting on behalf of the university,” Krebs said. “I thought it was in the responsibilities of the job and therefore the university paid for the trip. Given the fact that it was a working trip for us the sense was we could justify the expenditure.”

But UNM President Abdallah isn’t buying that explanation. “(UNM) spent money from … university funds in order to take donors on a golf trip. If (the funds) were from the Foundation then we would not be having this conversation,” President Abdallah told KRQE News 13. He added, “In this particular case the Vice President for Athletics made the wrong call.”

“Hindsight’s always 20/20. If we had to do it over again would I do it differently? Would I use a different source of funding? Would we consider something different? Yes,” Krebs said.

“Any time that you lose trust or you do something that causes the perception that you’re not a good steward of the public money it is a very important issue,” President Abdallah told KRQE News 13.

“We’ll look back … and figure out exactly what happened in this particular case and move forward. I know we will not spend public money on golf trips to Scotland. I can guarantee you that.”

WATCH: Information video about the Old Course Hotel »

WATCH: Information video about the Trump Turnberry »

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Think Santa Fe and perhaps the historic Plaza comes to mind. Or maybe the magnificent Santa Fe Cathedral? Or how about the staircase at the Loretto Chapel? But definitely NOT 1004 Calle Feliz. Hidden away in a pleasant central Santa Fe neighborhood is the City Different’s most infamous address.

“It’s disgusting. It’s filthy,” Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales said.

“It’s just an eyesore,” Santa Fe City Councilor Ron Trujillo said.

“This is one of the worst properties in the whole neighborhood in terms of it being just a junk pile,” neighbor Chris Eustice said.

Consider the front yard. There are derelict cars. A dilapidated camping trailer. Canned food. A car door. Dingy mattress. Truck bed, Assorted junk, trash, and filth. And no, it’s is not some abandoned rattrap. The homeowner, John Valerio, is a self-described ‘collector’ of sorts.

“What I do is recycling. Recycling and trying to get everything organized,” Valerio told KRQE News 13.

But others see Valerio as a ‘nightmare neighbor.’ Chris Eustice lives across the street. He says when he looks out his window he sees, “blight and a fire hazard. I’m worried about my property values. More importantly, I think it’s just a health threat. It’s a menace.”

Calle Feliz is in City Councilor Ron Trujillo’s district. Trujillo says he would not like to live next door to John Valerio. “I’ve met with many, many constituents on the street. They’re not happy. Something has to be done,” Trujillo said.

“It’s substandard in violation of city ordinances. It’s a very big problem,” Santa Fe Assistant City Attorney Zach Shandler said.

In fact, for nearly a decade, John Valerio has stubbornly defied his community and the law by refusing to clean up his blighted property.

Is this the worst kept home in Santa Fe?

Valerio says, “This is not that bad. I can find a lot more that are much worse.”

But Chris Eustice says, “Some of the neighbors and I (have) offered to help clean up the property, haul some of the stuff off to the dump but he doesn’t want it touched.”

Assistant City Attorney Zach Shandler said, “I’ve been trying to persuade him, cajole him to get him to come into compliance.”

At City Hall, John Valerio is an outlaw of sorts. In fact, when it comes to nuisance abatement Valerio is City Hall’s public enemy number one. But if you thought Santa Fe was aggressively enforcing its ordinance, think again. As far as Santa Fe is concerned, 1004 Calle Feliz is a ‘prosecution free zone’ and John Valerio is an ‘untouchable.’

Zach Shandler admits Valerio’s property is a ‘no man’s land’ and, he says, Santa Fe has no power to bring Valerio into compliance with city law.

What’s so special about John Valerio and his property? Since 2012 the ownership of 1004 Calle Feliz has been tied up in District Court in foreclosure proceedings. Years ago, City Hall decided not to enforce the nuisance ordinance at Valerio’s property until the foreclosure issue is resolved in court. Rather than take aggressive action against an egregious community violator Santa Fe Code Enforcement Inspectors simply stand on the sidelines watching John Valerio trash the neighborhood.

And, when it comes to documenting the violations, don’t look to Code Enforcement. Despite years of blatant city violations, the only documents in Valerio’s City Hall file are a stack of emails, some letters, two notices and four photographs. That’s it.

According to Santa Fe’s Zach Shandler, the city cannot enforce its ordinance if a property is tied up in foreclosure. However, Sandler admits he is not aware of any court orders preventing Santa Fe from enforcing its laws. “I believe that if the city took action, Mr. Valerio’s lawyer would file something against us and we would lose in court,” Shandler said.

Neighbor Chris Eustice doesn’t think Santa Fe is doing its job of keeping the neighborhood safe. “My message to the city, please just simply do your enforcement. Do what you’re being paid to do,” Eustice says.

KRQE News 13’s investigation finds Santa Fe’s failure to enforce its ordinance at the Valerio property is based on nothing more than a misunderstanding. Oops.

Just three weeks ago, City Hall reversed its hands off policy and slapped John Valerio with a citation charging him with excessive litter and junk cars. Valerio will tell his story to a Judge later this month.

Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales had harsh words for his legal department. “I’m extremely disappointed that it’s taken as long as it has. Clearly, responsibility lies both in our City Attorney’s office and our Land Use Office for not moving it into the courts,” Mayor Gonzales said.

The Mayor added, “Any time you see a property that looks like this that has been unaddressed by the city, of course, they dropped the ball and it’s something that needs to be addressed.”

Meanwhile, Chris Eustice has a message for his neighbor across the street. “Try to be a better neighbor. Try to clean up. Haul some of this stuff off to the dump. It’s got no value whatsoever. None,” Eustice said.

“This is not going to continue to go on,” Mayor Gonzales said. “(John Valerio) can’t continue to avoid (his) responsibility to (his) neighborhood and to the city. And one way or another that property is going to get cleaned up.”

KRQE News 13 caught up with Valerio shortly after he was served with a citation. Will he clean up his property?

“If I want to yes. If I don’t I won’t. But I will,” Valerio said.

Photos: Santa Fe’s Notorious Nightmare Neighbor

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez calls it “astonishing.” Secretary of Corrections David Jablonski calls it “very frustrating.” State Senator Mark Moores calls it “heartbreaking.” And Mike Nord calls it, “one of the biggest outrages I’ve ever seen.”

No one understands the flaw in our criminal justice system better than Mike and Barbara Nord. Their 14-year-old son Reece was struck and killed by drunk driver Justin Mishall 15 years ago.

“It disrupted everything that was normal for our lives,” Barbara Nord said.

Mike Nord added, “There’s still a lot of emptiness and sorrow. The shock wave is not measurable.”

Mishall served three and a half years in the State Pen for vehicular homicide. He was also ordered to pay restitution to the Nords to cover Reece’s medical and funeral costs. However, after paying a few hundred dollars, Mishall defiantly refused to pay the rest.

“It was so incredible that he could actually sleep at night knowing that he’s the one that killed my son and I paid for the ambulance,” Mike Nord said. “He kills my son I pay for the helicopter. He kills my son I have to pay for a cemetery plot. I couldn’t get my brain wrapped around the fact that what the judge had ordered meant nothing.”

It’s not only Justin Mishall. A six-month KRQE News 13 investigation finds many convicted criminals don’t pay their victim restitution. Even though state law requires it, there’s a loophole that allows convicted felons to beat the system. Prosecutors and judges are powerless to force criminals to comply with court-ordered restitution. And even though judges can revoke probation for unpaid restitution, that virtually never happens.

Does the general public realize that defendants can beat the system as it relates to restitution?

Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez says, “I don’t think most people understand that and quite honestly I think most folks inside the system don’t recognize the scale of the problem when it comes to restitution.”

For example, consider the case of Ricky Leyba. After he shot two bystanders at a Santa Fe nightclub Leyba was convicted of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. Leyba’s sentence included $513,669 in restitution to cover his victim’s medical expenses. However, once Leyba got off parole he stopped making payments. Today, he owes his victim $492,600 in unpaid restitution.

Tucked into the Victim Restitution Act is a provision that gives the state authority to enforce court-ordered restitution ONLY during an offender’s probation or parole period.

Correction’s Secretary David Jablonski, who oversees the state Probation and Parole Division, admits once a defendant has been discharged from probation the state has no authority to force that defendant to pay their restitution.

“We can’t recoup those funds for those victims and these offenders get off supervision without making those victims whole,” Secretary Jablonski said.

A list of felons who got a free ride from the system reads like a who’s who of the criminal underworld. Adrian Romero was sent to the State Pen for fraud and forgery in connection with a phony hunting scheme in Grants. After his discharge from parole, he stopped making restitution payments. Today, Romero owes his victims a total of $186,600.

Ivan Benavidez shot and injured a juvenile in traffic. As part of his plea deal, Benavidez agreed to pay his victim’s medical expenses. However, Benavidez stopping paying restitution after his probation ended. Today, he owes his victim $77,146.

Debra Dofflemyer embezzled from her Santa Fe employer. Her guilty plea included an order to pay restitution. However, Dofflemyer stopped paying once she had completed her probation. Debra Dofflemyer walked away without reimbursing the $197,800 she stole from her victim.

Agnes Sanchez was a clerk at the Motor Vehicle Department but got caught with her hand in the till. As part of her plea, she agreed to pay the money back. However, when her probation ended so did her restitution payments. Agnes Sanchez skipped out on her obligation to repay $69,821.

Embezzler Becky Serrano’s free ride was $126,576. Con-man Eric Terran got away without reimbursing his victim $100,955. Credit card fraudster Loretta Gallegos skipped out on $149,178.

The list goes on and on. Maria McCloskey, $60,958. Louis Carrillo, $95,524. Damian Rivera, $94,906. Dianna Romero, $60,795. They all beat the system by refusing to pay their court-ordered restitution.

“Restitution is frankly the most direct way that a defendant is accountable directly to their victim,” District Attorney Raul Torrez says. “Whenever you see a failure of this type it undermines confidence in the entire system and that’s why it’s so important,” according to Torrez.

Even though the state has no power to enforce restitution after an offender’s probationary period, the Correction’s Department does require signed promissory notes from offenders with outstanding restitution debts.

For example, after Debra Dofflemyer completed her probation last year, she signed a promissory note agreeing to pay her victim $100 a month for the next 163 years. Dofflemyer has yet to make any payments.

Secretary Jablonski admits the Corrections Department has no authority to enforce the promissory notes.

“Unfortunately after they discharge from our jurisdiction … these offenders stop paying despite having that promissory note,” Secretary Jablonski said. The Cabinet Secretary concedes the promissory notes are worthless.

Over the course of three legislative sessions, State Senator Mark Moores has sponsored bills that would repair the flaw in the Victim Restitution Act.

“The loophole in this statute is un-American. It’s unfair and it victimizes victims all over again,” Senator Moores said.

However, despite several attempts at reform, lawmakers have shown no interest in the issue. The proposed legislative fix has been repeatedly voted down in committee. Mike and Barbara Nord testified for the change in the law.

“I would love to talk to anybody up in Santa Fe that voted against this. I want somebody to tell me how they possibly can justify this,” Mike Nord said.

“I think most felons and criminals in New Mexico know that there’s a big loophole out there, that they do not have to pay restitution once they’re off parole.

That is inexcusable. The word is out. These criminals are not fulfilling their obligation to the people of our state,” Senator Moores said.

Despite lawmaker’s reluctance to fix the problem, Otero County District Attorney John Sugg has found another way to compel compliance.

After Jennifer Carrasco (Alamogordo) was convicted of embezzling $7,119 from a non-profit animal shelter she failed to pay her court-ordered restitution. D.A. Sugg filed a Writ of Execution asking that Carrasco’s property be seized and forfeited in order to satisfy the restitution debt. Rather than lose her property Carrasco decided to pay the money she owed.

Bernalillo County D.A. Torrez said he plans to look at property liens and garnishing wages as a means of collecting restitution from offenders.

“I don’t view this as a technical violation. I think it’s something that victims have a right to expect. We’re going to work hard to make sure it starts to happen more often,” Torrez said.

For Barbara and Mike Nord, the pain of losing their son 15 years ago will never go away. The couple is frustrated with the state’s failure to enforce court-ordered restitution.

“You call this fair? These families are hurting. We just need somebody to say we’re on your side,” Barbara said.

“This is pretty pathetic. It’s pretty sad. (Justin Mishall) walked away and we barely even got an apology out of the darn thing,” Mike said.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – University of New Mexico Athletic Director Paul Krebs has been keeping a secret under wraps for two years and it involves that ill-fated golf trip to Scotland.

“I think looking back on it two years later I understand why people might question it,” Krebs told KRQE News 13 earlier this month.

Organized by an Indiana travel agency it was a dream vacation with a hefty $8,189 per person price tag: The pitch? Tour with Lobo celebrities Paul Krebs and Craig Neal for a week long golfing holiday in Scotland. Stay at the finest hotels and play golf on some of the most famous golf courses in the world. Twenty-three participants signed up for the June 2015 Scotland holiday. But not everyone paid their own way. For some, it was a free vacation at public expense.

A Larry Barker investigation found the public footed the bill for UNM officials to go to Scotland and play golf. The Athletic Department shelled out tens of thousands of dollars for airfare, travel agency fees, luxury hotels and daily rounds of championship golf at world class golf courses.

UNM paid $8,189 for Craig Neal’s golf trip. Paul Krebs’ holiday cost the university $9,379 and Lobo Club executive Kole McKamey charged his $8,189 golf outing to a university credit card.

Earlier this month, UNM Acting President Chaouki Abdallah told KRQE News 13 the Scotland trip was an inappropriate use of public money.

“This is not where university funds should be should be spent. I want the public to know that in the future we will not be using university funds for such activities,” President Abdallah said.

Paul Krebs justified the expenditure as a working business trip. He said executives tagged along with potential donors to drum up financial support for the school’s athletic programs.

“The trip was a working trip and it was designed to immerse us with these donors. It was an intensive experience and I understand why people may question it,” Krebs said earlier this month.

Athletic Department documents obtained by KRQE News 13 show someone disguised the trip by recording it as a basketball tournament in Ireland. Earlier this month Krebs confirmed the Scotland golf trip cost UNM $39,382.

But now it turns out that wasn’t exactly the truth. KRQE News 13 has learned Paul Krebs has been keeping some things about that 2015 golf junket under wraps.

“VP Krebs came to me and told me that he wanted to tell me something that he had forgotten or did not tell me before,” UNM President Abdallah said. “I was not happy.”

Paul Krebs told President Abdallah it wasn’t just Athletic Department bigwigs who got a free vacation to Scotland. Krebs now admits, UNM quietly picked up the tab for a select group of local businessmen to go on the trip. He admits using $24,000 in university funds to give private individuals a free golfing holiday. The Athletic Director says UNM paid for their trip because they were potential donors to the athletic program.

Add it all up, and the public ended up shelling out $64,949 for a golfing holiday in Scotland.

It’s a bombshell UNM’s Athletic Director failed to disclose until last week. President Abdallah acknowledges this is a “serious” omission. “There’s no question in my mind it was wrong,” President Abdallah said.

So not only did the public pay for Krebs, Neal and McKamey to live it up in Scotland, but businessmen Darin Davis, Raleigh Gardenhire and Paul Gibson also got a free vacation courtesy of UNM. Never mind the expenditures are in direct violation of the state constitution’s anti-donation clause.

“He told me about it in no uncertain terms,” President Abdallah said. “He didn’t try to sugarcoat it. He said I made a mistake. I didn’t tell you about it before. Here’s what happened. I’m going to try to fix it.”

UNM fundraising activities are handled exclusively by the UNM Foundation which is a private non-profit organization, separate from the university. When asked why the UNM Foundation didn’t pay for the Scotland golf trip, President Abdallah said, “It would have been the appropriate thing to do. The foundation is the entity that’s charged to try to raise money.”

President Abdallah says the UNM Foundation has not reimbursed the university money that went towards the Scotland trip. The UNM Foundation did not respond to a request for comment.

“I’ve worked with VP Krebs for a while and I think he is an honorable man,” President Abdallah told KRQE News 13. “He’s done a lot of good for this university.”

KRQE News 13 asked President Abdallah whether an ‘honorable’ man misspends tens of thousands of dollars in university funds?

“Even honorable men sometimes make a mistake,” President Abdallah responded.

The money that was inappropriately spent on golf trips for private individuals was paid back late last week. The UNM President’s office said the money was received from an “anonymous donor”.

“We do have checks and balances. We do internal audits sometimes we find mistakes and sometimes we miss it,” President Abdallah said. He admits, as mistakes go, this one is “a big one.”

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – First it was that Scotland golf junket at public expense. Now, it’s mismanaged financial accounts in Loboland.

Ground zero for this latest University of New Mexico Athletic Department scandal is “The Pit,” UNM’s unique basketball arena. It involves hundreds of thousands of dollars, reckless accounting practices and a two page list that reads like a New Mexico who’s who and includes athletes, civic leaders and prominent business executives.

“The Pit,” Ground Zero

To understand what’s happened you need to go back eight years to The Pit’s $60 million renovation. The massive makeover included expanded concourses, a new facade, additional concessions and 40 luxury sky boxes. Lobo fans who shelled out as much as $45,000 a year could enjoy a season of Lobo basketball in the comfort of a private suite. The sky box rental fees were intended to help pay for the renovation.

However, KRQE News 13 found not everyone who rented the private suites actually paid the hefty price tag. In fact, some got a free ride courtesy of UNM. Whether by design or simply sloppy bookkeeping, Athletic Department bean counters failed to collect $432,641 in sky box rental fees. Some uncollected debts go back seven years.

UNM’s Executive Vice President for Administration David Harris told KRQE News 13, “We’re a public institution. It certainly raises valid questions. I think that’s why we’re trying to get to the very bottom of this situation.”

All of the discrepancies occurred during Paul Krebs’ tenure as UNM’s Athletic Director. The financial irregularities are detailed in documents turned over to KRQE News 13 pursuant to a Public Records Request in May.

Among the UNM documents is a two page spread sheet reflecting sky box past due accounts. Since 2010, 42 private suite invoices are listed as unpaid.

Lobo star Kenny Thomas

For example, the UNM documents show former Lobo star Kenny Thomas owes $40,000 for his 2014 use of private suite number 21. The documents include a note that a paper invoice was sent to Thomas in January 2015. It is unclear whether anyone at UNM tried to collect the debt.

Lavu, Inc.

The Albuquerque high tech start-up firm Lavu, Inc. is listed as owing $42,500 for its 2014 use of private suite number 28. KRQE News 13 contacted Lavu CEO at the time, Andy Lim, about the outstanding debt. Lim, who has since left the company, said he didn’t “know anything about it” and hung up. A spokeswoman for Lavu did not respond to KRQE News 13’s request for comment.

Integrated Control Systems

UNM records show an Albuquerque firm, Integrated Control Systems, owes a total of $67,500 for rental of sky box number 19 in 2014 and 2015. It is not known if anyone at UNM tried to collect the debt. A note in the UNM documents reads there “may have been a conversation with P. Krebs.” A spokesman for Integrated Control Systems President Steve Chavez says the company was not invoiced and the debt is likely a mistake. At the time of the suite rental, Steve Chavez was a minority shareholder of Wise Pies, Inc. which owned the naming rights to The Pit.

Consolidated Solar Technologies

During the 2014 Basketball season, suite number 14 was rented by Consolidated Solar Technologies. UNM records show the firm owes $21,000. A notation on the Consolidated Solar Technologies account reads, “attempt to collect made by phone call.” However, company President Jerry Mosher told KRQE News 13 he did not receive an invoice and was not informed of the debt. Mosher says he did get a call from the Lobo Club this week about the past due account. Moser says he will pay what is owed.

Nestor Romero

UNM records indicate Albuquerque businessman Nestor Romero owes $80,000 for sky box number 26 in 2010, 2011 and 2012. A notation on Romero’s past due account reads, “attempt to collect unknown.” Romero told KRQE News 13 he does not recall receiving invoices for the debt. He says he will rectify any unpaid balances.

J. J. Griego

UNM records indicate former Lobo basketball star J. J. Griego is on the hook for $9,000 in connection with his 2014 rental of suite number 38. However, Griego told News 13 on Friday that the charge is a mistake. Greigo says after he signed the rental agreement, he changed his mind and did not use the suite. He says UNM staffer Joe McLean told him at the time to disregard the invoice.

(Editors Note: This has been updated from original reporting on July 13, 2017 which stated that UNM claims it sent Griego a paper invoice in January 2015, there is no evidence anyone at the University tried to collect the debt.)

UNM’s Board of Regents

The two page list of past due accounts is not limited to sports figures and corporate executives. Included in the spreadsheet is the name of former UNM Board of Regent’s President Jack Fortner. Fortner, who is a Farmington attorney, rented sky box number 8 in 2014 for his personal use. University records indicate he owes $13,864. Fortner told KRQE News 13 the first he heard about the outstanding debt was last week. Fortner, who resigned from the Regents in May, says an Athletic Department source admitted the department was told not to send Fortner a bill for the debt. On Monday, the former Regent wrote a check for the full amount.

And then there’s private suite number 10, reserved for the exclusive use of UNM’s Board of Regents. The Athletic Department listing of sky box accounts in arrears shows the Regents failed to pay $30,000 for suite usage in 2015 and 2016. A notation on the Regent account reads, “never invoiced.” UNM officials admit they never sent the University’s governing board a bill. The debt was paid on June 30 which was one month after KRQE News 13’s Public Records request.

“That’s a difficult one to explain,” UNM Vice President David Harris says. “I personally took care of those funds being budgeted at the direction of the Regents. Why we were not invoiced I really can’t answer,” Harris said. “We did pay promptly as soon as we knew about it.”

“It’s Very Serious. It’s Public Money.”

It will be up to newly named Interim Athletic Director Janice Ruggiero to spearhead the collection of past due accounts. “It’s very serious. It’s public money. We’re a public institution,” Ruggiero said. “I believe anytime anybody is dealing with money we all need to be held accountable. Athletics needs to be held accountable. The Lobo Club needs to be held accountable because it is public money,” Ruggiero told KRQE News 13.

VP Harris says the University is conducting its own internal investigation. “I believe that there will be disciplinary action. I don’t believe that we’re anywhere near understanding where this went wrong,” Harris said.

“I believe we owe the suite holders an apology for our poor business practices, but ultimately we owe the fans an apology,” Janice Ruggiero said. “At the end of the day it’s public money and we’re responsible for it and we need to be good stewards of it and hold ourselves accountable,” Ruggiero told KRQE News 13.

The State Auditor’s office and the Attorney General’s office are conducting separate investigations of UNM’s Athletic Department finances.

List from University of New Mexico Athletic Department

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – It’s a City of Albuquerque expenditure so obscure only a handful of public officials know about it, yet it’s costing taxpayers millions of dollars. It involves the state’s largest utility. A KRQE News 13 investigation finds the Public Service Company of New Mexico is accused of gouging taxpayers with inflated bills and excessive charges.

“In no uncertain terms we let PNM know that we thought that a lot of these charges were questionable,” says Albuquerque Chief Administrative Officer Rob Perry. “We need to change things going forward because we (aren’t) going to be paying them,” Perry said.

What’s this all about? Street lights.

You see, whenever an Albuquerque street light is damaged, PNM does the repair and then bills the city. For example, in January 2014, a motorist crashed into a street light pole at 12th Street and I-40. PNM repaired the damage then invoiced the city $4,467. Then, in October 2014, thieves stole the copper wiring from a street light at Coors and Old Airport Road. PNM’s repair bill was $20,032.

Street lights are damaged more often than you think. Since 2012 PNM has billed the City of Albuquerque $3,806,412 to repair 718 city owned street lights.

But if you take a close look at PNM’s invoices you will find hidden among the nuts and bolts, insulators and cables, some unusual extras.

For example, PNM routinely has taxpayers pick up the tab for PNM employee benefits like payroll taxes, pensions, worker’s comp, vacations, even employee meals. These extra charges commonly add hundreds of dollars to each repair bill.

“Those indirect types of charges (look) pretty questionable and in certain cases (are) unsupported, probably improper,” CAO Rob Perry said. “(Those charges are) not in the best interest of PNM and certainly (not) the city taxpayers of Albuquerque.”

And it’s not just fringe benefits.

PNM also hits up Albuquerque taxpayers for unexplained overtime pay even though street lights are rarely repaired during off hours. For example, in November 2014, thieves stole the copper wire from a street light in the 7100 block of Jefferson NE. PNM repaired the damage three months later and then billed the city $2,218 in overtime pay.

No Explanation Charges

Albuquerque’s Risk Management Director Peter Ennen tells KRQE News 13 the city should not be paying time and half for PNM employees to do non-emergency repairs. Ennen says PNM has not provided an explanation of its overtime charges.

PNM also tacks something called “A and G loads” on all of its Albuquerque repair bills. “We don’t get any explanation of how they calculate that charge or what it is. We just get the expense on the invoice,” according to Peter Ennen, who thinks ‘A and G’ is a charge for overhead.

Is that a legitimate expense? Ennen says, “It could be. And if it is we’re willing to pay it. But we don’t get any explanation for it. It’s just there.”

PNM also includes a charge for “outside temp services” on its street light repair bills. “We think that’s paying temporary clerical people to prepare the bills. It just doesn’t seem right. It is a part of their cost but I don’t know that we have to pay extra just to have our bills put together,” Ennen said.

It’s not just the money. There’s also a public safety problem with PNM’s repairs and it has to do with the crime of copper theft.

Unreported Copper Thefts

Since 2012 copper thieves have ripped out the valuable copper wire from 248 street lights across the city. PNM has billed the city more than $2,000,000 to repair the damage done by copper thieves. However, these crooks are rarely caught. They operate in the dead of night, and, PNM usually does not notify the police that a crime has occurred.

“That’s a problem because (the city) may not find out about (a copper wire theft) for six or eight months until we get the bill from PNM,” Peter Ennen said. “They just go do the repairs and send us a bill. APD may never get a report on a copper theft. And that’s a major problem for APD.”

“There’s all kinds of problems with delayed reporting (of copper theft), the biggest of which is we simply don’t know that the crime is occurring,” says APD Commander Paul Szych, who oversees the police department’s copper theft investigations. “It’s very difficult to stop something that you don’t know is happening. It makes it very challenging to make an apprehension and therefore stop the problem. So for us it’s a real big deal,” Commander Szych told KRQE News 13.

“An Urgent Matter”

According to Peter Ennen, PNM has shown no interest in explaining or justifying its billing practices. “We’ve had questions about the billing for many years and couldn’t resolve them,” Ennen said. “We decided that we were just going to refuse to pay for things that we questioned.”

In February, the Albuquerque Legal Department sent a strongly worded letter to PNM calling the utility’s billing practices “an urgent matter.” Assistant City Attorney Jane Yee wrote, “…the City will no longer pay any amounts on the invoices not allowed by law.” Yee added, “PNM is submitting these invoices in an untimely manner, that is, consistently more than six months after the incident… In addition and most problematic, PNM is submitting these invoices without police and dispatch reports.”

City administrators say they have not received a written response to the Legal Department’s February 2 letter.

A spokesman for PNM declined KRQE News 13’s request for an interview. However, in a written statement, the utility said it “…bills the City only for the actual costs for street light repairs and does not mark up those costs for a profit.” PNM defends its practice of billing the city for employee fringe benefits by calling the charges “completely appropriate.”

According to Risk Management’s Peter Ennen, since the February letter, PNM has stopped itemizing its bills.

Rob Perry says, “We’re at a point now where it’s time to fix the problem and to ensure that (PNM’s) invoices are fully supportable, that they’re timely and that they’re done in a prudent and justifiable way on behalf of the taxpayers.” Perry adds, that has yet to happen.

Statement from PNM to KRQE News

We understand the City has questions regarding costs associated with streetlight repair.  We have been actively engaged with the City of Albuquerque since 2016 to resolve issues and recently have been working even more closely to ensure a more collaborative and positive process going forward and we feel that good progress has been made.

Per our long standing agreement with the City, PNM bills the City only for the actual costs for streetlight repairs and does not mark up those costs for a profit. In addition, PNM does not charge any other customers for these amounts.

As a fully regulated Company, PNM’s accounting for costs is reviewed through the rate review process and PNM may therefore itemize the costs incurred in greater detail than other businesses.  As an example, while other businesses include any costs of employee retirement and benefits and workers’ compensation in their overall labor rate, PNM separately tracks and identifies these costs. While these costs may be presented separately when invoicing the City, the costs are billable under the agreement and completely appropriate.

Given the public safety priority associated with repairing and replacing inoperable streetlights, PNM must sometimes incur over-time costs.  These over-time costs, when undertaken by PNM union employees, are billed in accordance with the union agreement and subsequently passed through to the City under the agreement.

We will continue to work with our partners at the City of Albuquerque on resolving this and any other issues. PNM strives for excellent customer service and we value our partnership with the City.

The City’s Letter to PNM & a Sample PNM Invoice

The Letter from the City of Albuquerque to PNM

The Letter from the City of Albuquerque to PNM

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

A Sample Invoice from PNM to the City of Albuquerque

MORA, N.M. (KRQE) — Think majestic. Think monumental. Think iconic. Now, think Taj Mahal.

Of course the Taj Mahal is in India. Not nearly as well known and hidden away among the pines of a small mountain community is New Mexico’s own version of the Taj Mahal. In fact, New Mexico’s Taj Mahal is 10,000 square feet bigger. And while India’s sacred temple draws millions of tourists a year, no one visits the New Mexico building. You see, it isn’t a monument to grandeur, it’s a monument to waste.

A Multi-million Dollar Scandal

Years ago, taxpayers shelled out millions of dollars to construct a gargantuan public building in Mora, New Mexico. But once the structure was half completed, local politicians pulled the plug and abandoned the project. Today, it’s a massive two story, neglected, empty shell. Welcome to, what was supposed to be, the Mora County Courthouse.

“It’s the biggest deal that New Mexico has right now,” said State Senator Pete Campos, who is an outspoken critic of wasteful government spending.

“It’s deplorable. It’s sickening. Our taxpayer dollars truly have been wasted on a lot of these buildings across the state because we haven’t completed them,” Campos said.

To understand what happened here you need to go back to a multi-million dollar government scandal hatched a dozen years ago in northern New Mexico’s Mora County.

After Mora County’s crumbling, outdated courthouse was condemned for safety hazards in 2007, County Commissioners hit up the legislature to fund construction of a new government center. Armed with $5 million, the County Commission hired architect Antonio Ortega to draw up plans. But instead of designing a $5 million building, Ortega cranked out plans for a 44,000 square foot, $12.1 million ‘Rolls-Royce’ courthouse.

Even though Mora County Commissioners at the time knew they didn’t have enough money to complete the building, they authorized construction anyway. In fact, there was only enough money to build a foundation, two stories, walls and a roof. The County scraped together another $500,000 to install windows and doors. Then, the project was simply abandoned.

That was eight years ago.

Operating in Makeshift Offices for 10 Years

Today, Mora is the only county in New Mexico without a courthouse and for past 10 years, the public’s county business has been conducted in a series of aging double wide trailers.

“It’s been challenging,” said current Mora County Commission Chair Paula Garcia. “Ultimately it’s the people of Mora County that have paid because our citizens have to conduct county business in these substandard facilities.”

Don’t look for state courtrooms in Mora County, there aren’t any. In fact, the county’s sole Magistrate Judge works out of a single-wide mobile home. Jury trials are conducted in the Mora School Board meeting room.

“It is not a sufficient facility in which we should be conducting court business for the public and Mora County,” said Administrative Office of the Courts Director Artie Pepin.

While the government in Mora County operates out of makeshift offices, across the road sits the abandoned multi-million dollar, half complete courthouse, on hold.

Work Moves Forward, Partially

After an absence of eight years, construction workers are back. They’ve resumed work on the abandoned two story building shell in an effort to turn it into a functioning courthouse. Thanks to legislative funding, a local tax increase and a bank loan, newly elected members of the Mora County Commission pulled together enough money to build out a portion of the existing structure for county office space.

“This has been our top priority. Our goal has been to get something done to move our employees out of those trailers and into a permanent building,” Commissioner Paula Garcia said.

Mora County Commissioners hope to obtain additional funding this fall for a Magistrate Court as well as space for the Sheriff’s office. It is costing almost $2,000,000 just to evaluate the structural integrity of the structure and remedy mistakes made in the original construction.

“It doesn’t mean the buildings going to fall over (or) the walls are going to fall out,” said AOC Director Artie Pepin. “But it does mean (the building is) not built with sufficient structural integrity to meet code requirements. We want the building that the public is going to use to be built to code.”

“The bad news is there (are) structural deficiencies. The good news is they’re fixable but it’s at a cost,” said Commissioner Garcia. “We feel that the costs of those deficiencies should be borne by the people who are responsible for making those errors and we feel like they should be held accountable.”

Mora County Commissioners say they intend to file lawsuits against the original architect, contractor and structural engineer.

“The public has expended a significant amount of money on this building,” Artie Pepin said. “It’s amazing with everything that has happened with this building over time that we really are on the verge of actually having the public conduct business in the building.”

Newly constructed County offices and a Magistrate Court will occupy about half of the existing structure. Construction is expected to be complete by Spring 2018.

“Hopefully in a year or two the story is going to be that the Mora County courthouse is a fine public building serving the public interest … the way that it was intended to,” Senator Campos said.

Mora County Courthouse / Mora, NM

Mora County Courthouse

Mora County Courthouse Interior

Mora County Courthouse Interior

Mora County Courthouse Interior

Mora County Courthouse Interior

Mora County Courthouse / Mora, NM

Mora County Courthouse / Mora, NM

Mora County Courthouse Trailer

Mora County Courthouse Trailer

Mora County Sheriff Offices

Editor’s note below.

ALBUQUERQUE, NM (KRQE) – UNM’s Athletic Department is battling a budget deficit but you wouldn’t know it by looking at former Athletic Director Paul Krebs’ credit card usage. The dollars involved are staggering. Public money earmarked for student athlete programs was quietly diverted to personal use. And yet, nobody noticed. Not UNM’s administration, and not the auditors.

“It’s not right. When is this going to end in New Mexico,” said State Senator George Munoz (D-Gallup), who serves on the Legislative Finance Committee.

New Mexico policy dictates that any state expenditure must be for a public purpose and have a public benefit. However, a KRQE News 13 investigation finds that Paul Krebs diverted tens of thousands of public dollars to benefit his friends and family. The expenditures on his university issued credit card were not related to his job duties or responsibilities at UNM’s Athletic Department.

“It is troubling. Any misuse of public money is troubling,” Interim UNM President Chaouki Abdallah said.

For example, in 2014 Paul Krebs used his UNM credit card to fund a trip to one of the hottest sporting events in America, the NCAA Final Four. UNM picked up the $6,000 tab, which included thousands of dollars for tickets and airfare. In addition, the university picked up the $968 tab for Paul Krebs’ hotel room and another $1,936 for his brother’s hotel room. That’s right, Paul Krebs stuck the public with his brother Fred’s hotel expenses. That was three years ago. Last month, following our investigation, the former Athletic Director wrote a personal check and reimbursed UNM $1,936 for his brother’s 2014 hotel room.

“Ethically it’s completely wrong,” Senator Munoz said, after reviewing the documents obtained by KRQE. “It’s hard to believe that it really happened.”

“A credit card simply is a way to access public funds,” said retired career prosecutor Steve Suttle. “It’s no different than if you reached your hand in the till and took money.”

“This is money that citizens have earned. Anytime anybody takes anything that uses a credit card or takes (money) that belong(s) to the people or the taxpayers, that is a big deal,” Suttle added.

Paul Krebs must have been on the friends and family plan when he orchestrated a trip to the 2015 Final Four tournament and stuck UNM with the $7,453 tab. The bill included 10 tickets costing $3,135, airfare for $1,338, and, $1,638 for a hotel room. Krebs also charged UNM another $1,460 to pay hotel expenses for a Phoenix businessman and his wife. Krebs justified using public money for the benefit of private individuals by noting the Phoenix couple were potential donors to the athletic program.

According to Steve Suttle, if a government employee uses public funds to benefit a private individual, “you’ve committed a crime.”

No one at UNM questioned the $6,368 Paul Krebs spent on the 2016 Final Four tournament. Tickets alone set back the university $4,681. Krebs grabbed tickets for himself, his wife Marjori and his son Jacob. He gave Tim Cline, an executive with Learfield, a Texas based sports marketing firm, four tickets. Paul and Marjori’s $1,728 hotel bill was also charged on the UNM credit card.

The Krebs entourage hit up the university $13,119 for tickets to the 2017 Final Four tournament in Phoenix. It was a family affair. Paul’s wife got a seat, so did Paul’s children, and his three brothers. UNM Vice President David Harris got two tickets. So did Regent Rob Doughty as well as Associate Athletic Director Ed Manzanares and his three children. Half of the 28 tickets in Paul Krebs’ stash to the Final Four were distributed to an elite group of Lobo Club big wigs.

Paul Krebs put the $13,119 ticket charge on his UNM issued credit card in January. Four months later there was a rush of activity paying the money back. Was it a guilty conscience? We don’t know. However, the reimbursement checks to the university coincided with KRQE’s investigation into the ill-fated Scotland golf trip this spring in which Paul Krebs misspent tens of thousands on a golfing holiday.

Paul and Marjori Krebs wrote reimbursement checks, so did Paul’s brothers and Ed Manzanares. The Lobo Club tapped into its scholarship fund to write UNM a $4,025 check to cover Final Four perks given to club executives, insiders, and a select group of donors.

According to retired prosecutor Steve Suttle, paying back misspent funds may not negate a crime. “We’ve had several instances in New Mexico within the last five or six years of governmental officials who have played fast and loose with funds and paid them back and were still subject to prosecution,” Suttle said.

State Senator Munoz says he doesn’t see any public benefit for the Krebs family to attend the Final Four every year. “There’s no benefit. I can’t think of one benefit that we would have got from them going to the Final Four,” Senator Munoz said.

And it’s not just the Final Four. Since at least 2015 the public has shelled out more than $4,000 for Paul Krebs and his wife to attend the National College Football Championship games.

In July 2016, Krebs charged the university $373.95 for an airline ticket to Las Vegas, Nevada. UNM officials who reviewed the expenditure say it was for the Athletic Director to participate in a men’s basketball golf retreat.

Then there’s the thousands of dollars UNM has reimbursed Paul’s wife, Marjori to attend a multitude of out-of-state sporting events.

A provision in Krebs’ $1.1 million dollar contract permits the Athletic Director’s spouse to be reimbursed for “travel to athletic events” at university expense. UNM Interim President Chaouki Abdallah told KRQE it is standard in college athletics for an athletic director’s spouse to travel at public expense. At New Mexico State University the Athletic Director’s spouse is only permitted to travel on chartered aircraft for men’s basketball and football trips.

A 2015 addendum to Paul Krebs’ employment agreement also permits the Athletic Director’s “dependent children” to attend regular season away and NCAA postseason games at public expense.

Add it all up, and Paul Krebs used his UNM credit card for tens of thousands of dollars in expenses unrelated to his duties and responsibilities at the Athletic Department. There are potential violations of the State Constitution; criminal statutes come into play as well as the Governmental Conduct Act.

UNM President Abdallah says public funds should not be used to send the Athletic Director’s friends, family and private individuals to the Final Four. “I’m not going to tolerate it on my watch. What I’m trying to do right now is to figure out through the audits exactly what happened,” President Abdallah said. The State Auditor and UNM’s Internal Auditors are reviewing Athletic Department expenditures

“It’s taxpayer money. If the taxpayers paid for those trips they’re entitled to be reimbursed,” Senator Munoz said.

“We are the stewards of the public money and the public trust,” President Abdallah said. “Any time something happens that causes us to lose that is a day that is not good for the university and we try to do better every day.”

“I think everybody should care and even resent that anybody who’s been entrusted with governmental funds would ever convert those to their own use and benefit,” said retired prosecutor Steve Suttle.

Paul Krebs retired from his position as Athletic Director earlier this year. He did not respond to KRQE News 13’s request for comment on this report.

Editor’s Note: After our story aired, former UNM Regent Jamie Koch informed us that he had personally paid $700 for two tickets to the 2016 NCAA Final Four. He provided us with a copy of the check he wrote to the university on March 15, 2016.

Related Documents

Documents associated with former UNM Athletic Director’s spending

2015 Final Four Ticket Purchase

Hotel Rooms for Private Individuals, "Potential Donors"

2016 Final Four Ticket Purchases

Paul Krebs reimbursement check and explanation for his brothers 2014 hotel room charged on UNM credit card.

2017 Reimbursement Checks

2017 Reimbursement Checks

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) — When the Standard Insurance Company was hired to provide life insurance to New Mexico public employees there was not a whiff of scandal. But what a difference a few years makes.

A 2012 KRQE News 13 investigation found Standard committing misdeeds that is costing the out-of-state insurance company millions of dollars for business practices referred to as coldhearted and shameful.

What happened?

You need to go back five years. Gene Moser was State Personnel Director. ”I’ve never encountered anything like this. It staggers me,” Moser told KRQE News 13 in 2012.

To Martin Hoefler, it was a matter of life and death. He was a wildland firefighter with New Mexico’s State Forestry Division. Martin bought extra life insurance to provide for his family in case something happened. Tragedy struck in 2012 when Martin died of cancer leaving behind his wife and eight children. Martin Hoefler was just 50 years old.

Then, weeks after Martin’s funeral the Hoefler family received another devastating blow. Instead of mailing a check for $33,000, the Standard Insurance Company refused to pay the death claim. The news came in a cold three-page letter in which Standard said when Martin applied for his life insurance policy he didn’t fill out a required medical form. Standard said, no form, no life insurance. This, despite the fact Standard had been pocketing Martin’s premiums every two weeks for years.

And it’s not just Martin Hoefler. Bob Allard was a state employee working at Heron Lake State Park. “He was the kind of person that would show up early, leave late.” Park Superintendent Anthony Marquez told KRQE News 13 in 2012. “He took great pride in what he did here at the park. He took the job in his late 60’s to provide health insurance for him and his family and worked hard every single day that he came here.”

Bob had been paying his life insurance premiums all along. But when he died, Standard refused to pay Bob’s widow the $22,000 death claim because, the insurance company said, a medical form had not been filled out.

“When I found out that the two employees were denied coverage I was shocked,” General Services Cabinet Secretary Ed Burckle told KRQE News 13 in 2012. “I found it unbelievable that Standard had denied their claim when the two employees had been paying their premiums all along.”

“When a family is expecting that … money … for death benefits and find out that they are not getting anything, I think that’s obscene. (Standard’s) response was immoral. It’s wrong,” Gene Moser said in 2012.

A Class Action Lawsuit

Standard Insurance is headquartered in Portland, Oregon. The firm would not discuss the matter over the phone. And, they wouldn’t talk about it in person either when KRQE News 13 visited the company in October 2012. In a prepared statement, a Standard spokesperson wrote, “The State of New Mexico and The Standard are committed to fully addressing and resolving this situation.”

Standard sold life insurance to 74,505 public employees across New Mexico. KRQE News 13’s investigation found the firm denied more than $200,000 in death benefits to various families holding legitimate policies. In 2012, victims filed a Class Action lawsuit in federal court naming Standard Insurance and New Mexico’s General Services Division as defendants.

“Standard essentially waited until somebody died before they tried to figure out whether or not they were covered,” attorney Robert Hanson said. Hanson represents the victims in the Class Action lawsuit.

“We brought the lawsuit essentially alleging that the state and Standard were misrepresenting to state employees and local public body employees that they were in fact insured when they may have been at risk for having a claim denied,” Hanson said.

Last month, U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Molzen approved a $2.4 million out-of-court settlement in the Class Action case.

“If you’re a beneficiary of a loved one who has passed away and you find out that your life insurance carrier has denied your death benefits it’s an extremely big deal,” Secretary Burckle said. The New Mexico General Services Department agreed to settle the lawsuit for $100,000.

“The state wanted this issue behind us, to have it resolved. So we felt that adding $100,000 to enable both parties to settle the case was the appropriate action and greatly reduced the state’s future risk,” Secretary Burckle told KRQE News 13.

Secretary Burckle adds, after Standard refused to pay death claims for Martin Hoefler and Bob Allard in 2012, the state General Services Division issued checks to the families to cover the full amount owed under the life insurance policies. “I want (state) employees to know that (New Mexico) always had their back. When we said that we would make any individual whole whose death benefit was denied, we stuck to our word,” Burckle said.

The Settlement

The Standard Insurance Company agreed to settle the Class Action case for $2.3 million.

The good news is that every public employee who paid life insurance premiums to Standard will get a share of the settlement proceeds. The bad news is there are more than 74,000 employees who qualify. Any public employee who had basic life coverage with Standard will receive $5.06. Employees who opted for supplemental life insurance will get checks for $42.05. The first settlement checks are expected to be mailed out in about 30 days.

The Standard Insurance Company no longer has the contract to provide life insurance to New Mexico public employees.

“We have to find a better way to provide insurance coverage and peace of mind for people (who have life insurance) rather than waiting until after somebody has died to figure out whether or not they are covered,” attorney Robert Hanson said. “One would hope that through a multi-million dollar settlement, the executives … of the insurance company would be reevaluating the way that they do business.”

Statement from Standard Insurance for Larry Barker, KRQE

Oct. 31, 2017

• We are pleased that the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico granted approval of the settlement in the Brett Woods & Kathleen Valdes et al. v. Standard Insurance Company & the State of New Mexico General Services Department
• Importantly, employees who thought that they had purchased additional life insurance are now covered by the benefits they expected.
• The plaintiffs in this Lawsuit sought remedies from Standard Insurance Company and the State of New Mexico General Service Department (“GSD”) for certain individuals who had paid for additional life coverage through GSD payroll, but whose coverage was ineffective because they never submitted nor obtained approval of evidence of insurability as required by the group life insurance policy administered by GSD.
• Enrollment and premiums under this group policy are administered by the policyholder, not by the insurance company.
• After issues arose with several individuals, we worked with the GSD to ensure that State employees requiring an evidence of insurability first complete that process.
• Prior to reaching settlement of the Lawsuit, agreement was reached between GSD and Standard to provide coverage to those individuals who had paid premiums yet were not insured.
• Statement may be attributed to Bob Speltz, senior director, Public Affairs, Standard Insurance.

Related Coverage/Documents

• Larry Barker Investigation: State on hook for insurance-deal payouts
• Larry Barker Investigation: ‘Imaginary’ insurance policies cost families
• Order Granting Plaintiffs’ Motion And Memorandum In Support Of Final Approval Of Settlement And Application For Approval Of Attorneys’ Fees And Expenses And Class Representative Incentive Fees
• Class Action Complaint For Breach Of Contract, Breach Of Fiduciary Duty, Unjust Enrichment, Bad Faith, Statutory Violations, Declaratory Judgment And Injunctive Relief 11.20.12

SPRINGER, N.M. (KRQE) – Tucked away in a quiet corner of northeastern New Mexico, the Springer Town Cemetery is a mournful place where folks come for quiet reflection. But don’t be deceived by the peaceful scene there. You see there’s something terribly wrong at the Springer Cemetery. You won’t find any clues among the irregular rows of tombstones. The secret behind the town graveyard rests with the souls who are interred there. It’s a shocking tale of negligence, governmental incompetence and a shameful disregard for bereaved families.

“It’s a horrible situation,” says Springer Town Councilor Anna Phillips.

“How could this have gone on so long,” cemetery researcher Joy Matlack wonders.

“We all are just devastated over what’s going on up here,” says Gail Farmer, a member of the Springer Cemetery Board.

Occupied Family Plots

Mary Wiggins, who grew up in Springer, knows the problem at the cemetery first hand. When Mary’s dad passed away he was to be interred in the family plot. It didn’t happen. “The cemetery person that was going to dig the (grave) said that there were people buried where we thought our plots (are located),” Mary Wiggins says. The family was forced to bury their dad elsewhere in the cemetery. “We were devastated because we couldn’t do what mother and daddy had asked us to do which was bury him in the family plot,” Wiggins says.

After Springer resident Della Rich passed away, cemetery workers discovered the unmarked cremains of another person in Della’s burial plot. What’s going on at the Springer Cemetery? With some 1700 souls buried there, the century-old graveyard is virtually out of space. There is no more room. However, rather than turn away grieving families Springer’s City Hall has been re-selling burial plots.

“They go to dig a (grave) to bury somebody’s loved one and they find that somebody is already there,” says Springer Cemetery Board member Penny Jump. “What do you say? I mean its heart wrenching,” Jump says.

Who’s Buried Where?

“One thing we’re trying to figure out is … who’s actually buried in those graves,” says Joy Matlack, a volunteer researcher working with the Cemetery Board. For several years Joy has been trying to create an electronic database of the burials in the town graveyard. It’s a daunting task. All Joy has to work with is a fragile 1931 map someone found in a closet, an outdated map from 1971 and the grave markers in the cemetery.

“What’s actually in the cemetery doesn’t match any of the maps,” Joy Matlack says. “You can see from year to year to year, decade to decade, where a plot was sold and then it was resold, and then it was resold, and then it was resold,” Matlack told News 13.

Matlack says the Lopez family burial plot was sold to two different families. “They were going to bury (Roger Lopez) next to his parents. But when they went to dig the grave they found a coffin,” Matlack said. The Lopez family had to bury Roger elsewhere in the cemetery.

Cemetery Board member Gail Farmer says the town of Springer double sold burial plots belonging to the Louden family. “We had to reimburse the Loudon’s (a different burial plot) so that their family could be together,” Farmer says.

The same thing happened to the Kear family who bought 8 burial plots in the Springer graveyard years ago. However, when Mr. Kear passed away the cemetery couldn’t bury him in the family plot because there was a Mr. Martinez already interred there. The cemetery tore down an old storage building to make room for Mr. Kear’s remains.

And, then there’s the Coppick family. They were surprised to find strangers buried in the grave plots they bought some 40 years ago. “They had no knowledge of these (gravesites) being sold to anybody else and (they are) plots that they have deeds for that they obviously can’t use now,” Joy Matlack says.

Consider the ‘Pancho’ Mestes gravesite. “Mr. Mestes was supposed to be buried in Potter’s Field,” Matlack says. “I have no idea why he wasn’t buried in Potter’s Field but he was buried in the middle of Mrs. Walters’ plots. When the Walters came up to pay their respects to Mr. Walters they found Mr. Mestes in their plots,” according to Matlack.

Keith Walters first noticed a stranger had apparently been buried in the family plot some years after his dad died. “It’s a desecration to have someone take your grave that you paid for and put someone else in it,” Keith Walters says.

Even though the Mestes grave doesn’t show up on any of the cemetery maps, officials at Springer’s Town Hall have shown little interest in resolving the issue for the Walters family. In fact, it was only after the Walters family hired an attorney that Springer officials investigated. Keith Walters was recently told ‘Pancho’ Mestes is probably not interred in the Walters’ family plot, however, nobody is exactly sure just where Mr. Mestes was laid to rest.

Keith Walters isn’t the only victim to complain. In 2007 Mary Wiggins and her siblings wrote a letter of complaint to the Town of Springer after the mix-up involving Mary’s dad’s burial. Mary wrote, “… you have sold and interred remains in 4 of our plots.” Springer officials did not respond to the letter. A follow-up letter last year was also ignored. Mary Wiggins says Springer officials admitted making the mistake but did not apologize.

“I think it’s terrible to citizens that are in mourning that have to deal with that. To me it’s just very disrespectful,” says Springer Town Councilor Anna Phillips.

“When you’re lost your loved one it’s a difficult situation to deal with anyway. But then when you go and don’t have a place to put them I just can’t imagine. They need to stop selling any plots whatsoever until land is purchased and they have a new cemetery,” Councilor Phillips says.

Pointing Fingers

Springer Mayor Fernando Garcia did not return repeated phone calls for comment. KRQE News caught up with the Mayor at the tire and lube center where he works. Mayor Garcia blames prior administrations for the cemetery mess. “You’re talking 20 years right thereof an administration that didn’t keep accurate records,” Mayor Garcia said. “(It’s) spotty, bad record keeping. That’s all it was. It comes down to bad record keeping under different people, under different clerks. It is just bad record keeping,” Springer’s Mayor says.

The Springer Town Council is negotiating to purchase adjacent land for a new cemetery. While the politicians point fingers to assess blame, it’s the cemetery volunteers who must console the grieving victims at a country graveyard that is not as peaceful as it seems.

“Somebody has to stand up for those people and the families that are in the ground,” Joy Matlack says.

“It’s a very sad situation. They’re our ancestors and they deserve the respect that we can give them,” says Cemetery Board member Gail Farmer.

Drone Video, shot by Bob Martin, over Springer Cemetery

Springer Cemetery Maps: 1931, 1971

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – It was crooked politics at its worst and it involved millions of stolen dollars. Nearly a decade ago, high-ranking government officials and respected businessmen engaged in a high stakes game of bribery, kickbacks and fraud. When the treachery finally unraveled, the suspects were hauled into federal court for what is likely the most significant criminal case in New Mexico history.

You don’t have to look very far for the scene of the crime. It’s across the street from the U.S. District Courthouse in Albuquerque. Between 1999 and 2004 a corrupt gang of thieves siphoned more than $4.3 million from the construction of the Metropolitan Court Building.

“This I think was the largest amount of money and the biggest conspiracy that I have ever seen in New Mexico related to the misuse of public funds,” says former New Mexico Attorney General Gary King.

“The Court Administrator, the architect, the legislator, everybody that was in the project, had gotten together to steal,” Metro Judge Pro Tem Kevin Fitzwater said. Judge Fitzwater served on the Metro Court Building Committee at the time. “They betrayed our trust. We didn’t know they were all going to sit around the kitchen table and wink at each other and steal,” Judge Fitzwater said.

The “Gang of Eight”

The cast of characters reads like a who’s who of New Mexico politics and business. At the top was State Senator Manny Aragon:

• Once one of the most powerful politicians in the state, Manny Aragon lined his pockets with kickbacks and bribes. He was indicted on federal corruption charges in 2007. “I have pled not guilty to these charges and I have one other statement to make and that is I am completely innocent of these charges,” Aragon said after leaving court at his federal arraignment. But 18 months later Aragon sang a different tune. After changing his plea to guilty he was sentenced to 67 months in a federal penitentiary and fined $87,316. The U.S. Attorney at the time called Senator Aragon the ‘Godfather of Public Corruption.’
• Metro Court Administrator Toby Martinez was the mastermind behind the scheme. He pleaded guilty to bilking taxpayers out of millions and was sent to prison for 67 months.
• Contractor Raul Parra paid bribes and submitted phony invoices. Following his guilty plea Parra was fined $10,000 and ordered to serve 46 months behind bars.
• Metro Court Architect Marc Schiff paid kickbacks and filed false invoices. Following his guilty plea Schiff was ordered to serve a year in a federal penitentiary.
• Ex-Albuquerque Mayor Ken Schultz was the gang’s bagman. He delivered bundles of cash to Manny Aragon and was caught bragging about his political connections on an undercover FBI recording. Schultz pled guilty and drew five years’ probation and a $3000 fine.
• Toby Martinez’s wife, Sandra, set up a bogus company so her husband could launder his ill-gotten gains. For her crimes Sandra Martinez was sentenced to 5 years’ probation.
• Construction Manager Michael Murphy pocketed a $20,000 check and was ordered to serve a 2-year probation term.
• Technology subcontractor Manuel Guara submitted inflated invoices and was sentenced to 3 years’ probation.

“I think people were shocked when they saw the scheme. The amount of public money that was taken was really significant,” former A.G. Gary King said.

“This case was about greed,” U.S. District Court Judge William Johnson tells News 13. Judge Johnson presided over most of the corruption cases. “It was about eight individual defendants who abused positions of power and trust to obtain personal financial gain at the expense of the taxpayers,” Judge Johnson said.

But prison, probation and fines were only part of the sentences. Collectively, the “Gang of Eight” fleeced taxpayers out of more than $4.3 million. At sentencing each of the defendants were ordered to pay back the money they stole.

“Restitution is part of a judgment from the court that the judge hands down,” says former U.S. Attorney Damon Martinez. “It’s part of the price that the defendant has to pay in a wrongful act that he or she committed,” Martinez says.

Payments Received, Payments Owed

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Albuquerque said the amount of restitution paid by defendants is not a matter of public record. However, the U.S. District Court Clerk’s Office and the U.S. Probation Office provided News 13 with an accounting of the restitution payments received from the Metro Court defendants as of November 3, 2017:

• Michael Murphy was ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution. That money has been paid.
• Manuel Guara’s $100,000 restitution has been paid.
• Raul Parra has also paid his court ordered restitution of $601,532.
• Sandra Martinez’s restitution order totaled $106,000. Martinez still owes the State of New Mexico $5,846.
• Manny Aragon is on the hook for $1,190,642. The former State Senator still owes $430,851 in restitution, and, the $87,316 fine.
• Marc Schiff’s court ordered restitution was $678,015. The architect’s unpaid balance is $446,719.
• Ken Schultz was ordered to re-pay the $591,370 he stole from taxpayers. Court records show the Ex-Mayor has paid $99,039.22 towards his court ordered restitution. Schultz’s $3000 fine is unpaid.
• The biggest chunk of unpaid restitution belongs to former Metro Court Administrator Toby Martinez. Martinez, who is now out of prison, was ordered to re-pay $2,710,818. To date Martinez has paid back $15,913 and still owes the State of New Mexico $2,694,904.

The court ordered restitution for co-conspirators Ken Schultz, Manny Aragon, Toby Martinez and Marc Schiff includes $591,370 which is owed jointly.

“The total loss to the State of New Mexico was just over $4.3 million,” Federal Judge Johnson says. “As of this interview a little over $1.9 million has been collected in restitution. Around 45 percent has been collected today,” Judge Johnson said.

Under federal law, the Department of Justice has the power to collect restitution for up to 20 years. The U.S. Attorney’s Financial Litigation Unit is responsible for collecting unpaid restitution.

“Whether they ever have an ability to pay is … another issue. But the government can attempt to collect it for a lengthy period of time,” Judge Johnson says.

Former U.S. Attorney Damon Martinez says it would be very difficult for a defendant to skip out on their court ordered restitution. “When (the Department of Justice) does investigations (they) try to be comprehensive and make sure that no stone goes unturned … to find that money,” Martinez tells News 13.

The Metro Courthouse construction project was completed in 2004. The ‘Gang of Eight’ was sentenced in 2009.

“Public trust is trust. That trust was betrayed in this case,” Metro Court Pro Tem Judge Fitzwater says. “It was very important to show that those that betray it do pay the price. The justice that happens hundreds of times a day in every one of the (Metro) courtrooms is the legacy that I hope this building gives when it’s run its life span. That black mark I’ll always remember.  But I hope at some point it is vastly dwarfed by the good that happens in this building,” Judge Fitzwater said.

Judgement and Sentences

• Manny Aragon
• Toby Martinez
• Raul Parra
• Marc Schiff
• Ken Schultz
• Sandra Martinez
• Michael Murphy
• Manuel Guara

LOS LUNAS, NM (KRQE) – In the days of black and white television “Perry Mason” set the standard for crime solving good guys. The popular TV drama of the 50’s and 60’s was known for its dramatic courtroom confrontations. In the closing minutes of each episode a skillful Perry Mason (Raymond Burr) always managed to elicit a tearful courtroom confession out of some hapless murderer.

Whether it’s “Perry Mason”, “Murder She Wrote”, or “CSI” that’s how Hollywood solves murder cases. But it never happens that way in the real world. Go behind the scenes of a real police investigation and you get a first-hand look at what homicide detectives are truly up against. It’s a demanding job where the evidence trail often leads to a gritty underworld of guns, drugs and violence.

Consider December 30th, 2015. State Police Agent Ruben Franco was working late at his desk at the State Police office in Albuquerque when the phone rang. “The Administrative Assistant from upstairs called and said ‘Ruben we have a person here who wants to talk about a homicide,'” Agent Franco said.

He was an older gentleman in his 80’s. “He proceeded to tell me a pretty far-fetched story about a homicide,” Franco says. “Have you ever heard the name Casey Ramirez? Well I can tell you now, he’s dead. This guy pumped a clip full of shells into Casey Ramirez,” the informant told Agent Franco in a recorded statement.

The tipster’s details were sketchy at best. He claimed the murder happened somewhere in Valencia County.

“We have an individual that walks into the New Mexico State Police Office and he wants to report a homicide. Mind you, this person hasn’t seen the homicide himself and has no details. All he knows is that he’s heard that someone was killed,” State Police Chief Pete Kassetas says.

“Just the totality of it didn’t make sense to me,” Agent Franco said.

“We didn’t have any missing person’s report. We didn’t have a body. We didn’t have any suspects. We didn’t have any evidence to even lead us to a death investigation,” says State Police Lt. Carolyn Lucero who supervises the Investigations’ Bureau, “We had nothing to start with.”

Despite the lack of even basic information, an investigation was launched. Teams of State Police officers fanned out across Valencia County to try to answer the question: Who is, or was, Casey Ramirez?  According to Lt. Lucero, “Officers (started) knocking on doors of neighbors, family, relatives, friends.”

“Generally we can find the right person who has loose lips, for lack of a better word, and they’ll kind of spill the beans about what really happened. This case was different,” Agent Franco says.

Police Investigators spent weeks canvassing informants across Valencia County looking for clues to the alleged homicide. By mid-January critical details emerged. Detectives learned Casimiro “Casey” Ramirez, also known as “Shadow”, was a well-known drug dealer. Investigators learned, after a dispute with a local couple, Ramirez kidnapped an associate, Renee Foster, and demanded a ransom from her husband, Shane Foster.

Informants say some of the ransom money was paid and Renee was let go. Sometime later Casey Ramirez disappeared.

Nearly a month after the first tip came in detectives got their first break in the case. “We made contact with a female who had firsthand information (of the homicide) and she was the last person to be seen with Casimiro,” Lt. Lucero said.

The female witness said in November she rode in a borrowed Cadillac with Casey Ramirez to Shane and Renee Foster’s Los Lunas residence. The witness said Ramirez went inside. She waited outside in the car.

While waiting for Casey Ramirez to return, “She heard gunshots from inside the residence,” Lt. Lucero said. “After she heard the gunfire she said ‘I need to get out of here,'” Agent Franco adds. “As she is trying to leave the residence somebody exits the residence and starts firing numerous shots at the vehicle she was driving,” according to Franco.

“She sped away and she never saw Casimiro again,” Lt. Lucero says. Now Investigators had first-hand information. State Police Investigators now had evidence something deadly likely happened in the Foster home. The State Police obtained a warrant to search the property.

“We’re looking for any signs of any gunshots, any evidence of blood, anything that would lead us to believe a homicide actually took place there,” Agent Franco said.

State Police CSI Sgt. Rodger Brunson said when the search warrant was served on the Foster home, at first glance, there was nothing visible to indicate a homicide had taken place there. However, after a two-day search, Sgt. Brunson’s team discovered key evidence just inside the front door.

“There was what looked like holes that had been patched with some drywall putty. But it was still visible. … Some kind of hole there (had been) patched,” Sgt. Brunson said. In fact, once the putty was removed it was clear bullets made the holes. The CSI team also found several projectile points embedded in the doors and walls.

After applying a special chemical solution called “Bluestar” to the laminate flooring in the front entrance, the Crime Scene Investigators found evidence of blood that someone had tried to clean up. A later DNA analysis of the blood came back from the Crime Lab as a match to Casey Ramirez.

Sgt. Brunson told KRQE News based on evidence found in the Foster home, “The victim walked into the house and was immediately attacked by gunfire.”

Case Agent Franco said it was time to bring Shane and Renee Foster in for questioning. The State Police Investigation’s Bureau Janice Madrid led the interrogation team. “When I walked into the interview room I knew Shane Foster was involved somehow … in this investigation,” Agent Madrid says.

The videotaped interrogation of Shane Foster lasted almost nine hours. At the beginning of, often times intense interview, Shane Foster denied any involvement in the Ramirez disappearance. However four and a half hours into the police interview, the Los Lunas suspect broke down and confessed to killing Casey Ramirez.

“He came at me with two f**** guns to my f**** head. Do you understand that? You don’t understand that until you’ve been through it,” Shane Foster admitted. When Agent Madrid asked what happened to Ramirez, Foster replied, “I don’t know what happened to him. I know I shot him.” Agent Madrid asked Foster how many times he shot Ramirez? “I have no idea. When he shot at my head, my body just reacted. I don’t have no idea,” Foster said.

“The fact that he stated he shot Casimiro Ramirez was very powerful, very important to the case,” Agent Janice Madrid said. “Quite frankly we had a lot of physical evidence in this case. But to work through that interview and interrogation and that person finally come clean is really the icing on the cake for an investigator,” Chief Kassetas tells KRQE News.

The State Police Investigators now had solid evidence and a confession. The last challenge to the case was to find the body. Following Shane Foster’s confession, he led investigators to a remote site in the Bosque near Veguita, north of Socorro. The next day, a CSI team located the remains of Casey Ramirez buried in a shallow grave.

Shane Foster was arrested and charged with an open count of murder. Renee Foster was charged with tampering with evidence. At trial this past summer, the couple was found guilty. They are scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Cindy Mercer at Valencia County’s District Court next week.

Agent Ruben Franco admits this is a homicide investigation that almost never happened. “We didn’t have a missing person. We didn’t have a body. We didn’t have any family members coming forward. We didn’t have really anything to go on. So at that point the decision was almost made not to even look into it further,” Agent Franco says.

“We don’t get to pick and choose our victims,” Chief Kassetas says. “That’s the beauty behind what we do in police work. We work a homicide no matter who that victim is. … This case was about good solid police work. It (started with) very little information up front which led to a comprehensive investigation (and) ultimately a conviction of an individual that took someone’s life, Chief Kassetas says.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The 2017 edition of the Best of Larry Barker takes a look at some of his best investigations this year. We will look back at a neighbor no one wants and how criminals are getting away with not paying up. However, one of his biggest stories this year has sparked other investigations that reviled so much about the University of New Mexico’s Athletic Department.

It all started as a tip about a luxurious, week-long golfing holiday trip to Scotland. In May, Larry Barker exposed how the guest list included UNM VIP’s and how New Mexican’s paid for it. The hefty price tag included six nights in luxury hotels, meals and five rounds of golf at championship courses. A total of 23 participants signed up for the June 2015 golfing holiday. The group included then Vice President of UNM Athletics Paul Krebs, his son, wife, his in-laws, former head Lobo basketball coach Craig Neal and his wife along with a number of loyal Lobo boosters and fans.

The initial story put a lot of scrutiny on Paul Krebs who was paid more than $400,000 a year. After the initial investigations, tips started flowing into Larry and hinted that there was so much more mismanagement in UNM Athletics other than the golf trip.

Paul Krebs retired on June 2, after Larry’s second story, but there was so much more. In July Larry exposed how the UNM Athletics Department had a complete disregard for collecting public funds for the luxury suites at the Pit.

The investigation did not end there. Larry then looked into how the UNM Athletic’s Department, mainly Paul Krebs, was using their state credit cards. Krebs used his UNM credit card to fund trips to some of the hottest sporting events in the United States. One example was the NCAA Final Four three years ago. UNM picked up the $6,000 tab which included several thousand dollars for tickets, airfare, $968 for Krebs’ hotel room and another $1,900 for his brother’s hotel room. Following Larry’s investigation, Krebs reimbursed the university $1,900.

In November, then State Auditor Tim Keller released his investigation into UNM Athletics. The audit was basically a comprehensive look at all of Larry’s investigations. It pointed out how widespread the mismanagement became. Currently, the New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas is still investigating the mess to see if any criminal charges will be filed against anyone involved.

Read all of Larry Barker’s investigations on the UNM Athletics Department below:

• UNM sends Lobo execs on golf junket at public expense
• Scotland Golf Fiasco: UNM official drops a bombshell
• “Suite” Surprise: UNM reveals $432K uncollected fees from business, individuals
• Former UNM Athletic Director misspends public funds on friends, family

For continuing coverage of the UNM Athletics Department Investigation, click here »

In February Larry told you about a man who was conning homeowners, businesses, fraternal organizations, government agencies and at least four churches. The three-month investigation uncovered a dangerous fraud scheme involving tens of thousands of dollars, a shadowy fugitive and a popular elected official.

KRQE News 13 investigates eastern New Mexico fraud scheme (2/6/2017) - Ask anyone in eastern New Mexico about the devious fraud scheme that impacted scores of victims in places like Logan, San Jon or Tucumcari a…

Full Story: KRQE News 13 investigates eastern New Mexico fraud scheme

After a five-month investigation, Larry uncovered a dangerous public safety problem hidden away behind the walls of the New Mexico’s Prison System. The fiasco is not only costing taxpayers millions of dollars, but affecting lives as well. The issue relates to understaffing. Over the last two years, taxpayers have shelled out tens of millions of dollars to compensate for inadequate staffing at all New Mexico prison facilities across the state. The Department of Correction’s records shows that state officials have failed to hire enough Correctional Officers to control inmates.

13 Investigates: The costly crisis behind bars (3/20/2017) - There’s trouble brewing behind prison walls. It’s dangerous, disturbing and costly.

Full Story: 13 Investigates: The costly crisis behind bars

A six month investigation, found a loophole in New Mexico law that allows convicted felons to beat the system and all types of criminals are being handed a free ride. The investigation found that convicted criminals don’t pay their victim restitution, even though state law requires it. Prosecutors and judges are also powerless to force criminals to comply with court-ordered restitution. This loophole is caused by a provision that is tucked into the Victim Restitution Act that gives the state authority to enforce court-ordered restitution ONLY during an offender’s probation or parole period.

Beating the system: Convicted Felons Fail to Pay Court Ordered Restitution (5/16/2017) - Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez calls it "astonishing." Secretary of Corrections David Jablonski calls it "very frustrating.…

Full Story: Beating the system: Convicted Felons Fail to Pay Court Ordered Restitution

In May, Larry Barker introduced you to an unusual man who defies the law and wreaks havoc in his community. Hidden away in a pleasant central Santa Fe neighborhood is the cities most infamous address, 1004 Calle Feliz. In the front yard there are derelict cars, a dilapidated camping trailer, canned food, a car door, a dingy mattress, a truck bed, assorted junk, trash and filth. This is also not an abandoned rat trap. The homeowner, John Valerio, is a self-described “collector” of sorts.

Santa Fe’s Notorious Nightmare Neighbor (5/9/2017) - Think Santa Fe and perhaps the historic Plaza comes to mind. Or maybe the magnificent Santa Fe Cathedral? Or how about the staircase at the …

Full Story: Santa Fe’s Notorious Nightmare Neighbor

Have you missed the latest Larry Barker investigation? You can watch them here »

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Ask anyone. The number one issue facing New Mexico is crime. A two-month News 13 investigation finds our justice system dangerously overloaded. The problem is not that crooks aren’t being arrested, it’s that they aren’t being prosecuted. In fact, there are so many criminal cases clogging the system that thousands of accused felons, charged with everything from armed robbery to auto theft, won’t be prosecuted.

Bernalillo County District Attorney Raul Torrez says that’s what happens after the handcuffs come out, “…someone is put in the back of a police car and booked into jail, (that’s) when the criminal justice system starts. That’s not when it ends.”

Before a criminal suspect can be prosecuted, police detectives must first gather evidence and interview witnesses. A single case can consume hundreds of hours of investigation. The Albuquerque Police Department hands the District Attorney’s Office about 9,000 felony cases every year.

But many of those cases simply fall through the cracks. As a result, accused criminals, most of them repeat offenders, are handed “get out of jail free” cards courtesy of an antiquated, underfunded and overloaded justice system. “Of the (felony cases) submitted (to the DA) for various reasons, 40 percent are not prosecuted,” APD Interim Chief Mike Geier says. Chief Geier admits that’s not justice, “It’s very disturbing.”

“This office ends up taking about 2,000 felony cases a year and putting them on a shelf and hoping to get to those sometime in the future,” DA Torrez says. How does the Bernalillo County DA explain that to crime victims?  “You can’t explain it in a way that makes any sense to someone who doesn’t live day in and day out inside this system, who doesn’t understand what we’re up against, what the police are up against and the tools we have to get that job done.”

Consider the January 2014 stolen vehicle case against repeat offender Eugene Chavez. Chavez’s felony case never made it to court because his file sat unopened in the DA’s office so long the charges had to be dismissed. In February 2014, Chavez was arrested again, this time for fraud and forgery. However, we will never know if he was guilty or innocent because the DA misplaced the case file and had to dismiss charges.

Joseph Lujan’s February 2016 narcotics possession case was dismissed because a Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Deputy failed to turn over an audio recording of Lujan’s arrest. Lujan was then arrested in May 2016 on auto burglary charges, however, that case too was dismissed because the case got lost in the backlog.

Raul Torrez says a lack of resources is the reason his office cannot even come close to prosecuting all the pending felony cases in his office. He says there are simply too many criminals and not enough staff. “If we don’t get sufficient resources in this legislative session I would think several thousand felony cases simply will become too old, too stale for us to act on. It’s not justice,” Torrez says.

There was no justice for repeat offender Calupp Henderson. His September 2015 stolen vehicle case was dismissed by the DA.’s office because a police detective failed to send the DA a copy of the police report and the original theft report. Henderson’s March 2016 stolen vehicle arrest also wasn’t prosecuted because the APD detective did not provide the DA with a complete report. Following those case dismissals Calupp Henderson was arrested three more times, accused of crimes ranging from criminal damage to stolen vehicles.

Adrian Martinez’s February 2016 stolen property charge was also dismissed by the DA because the case file got lost in the District Attorney’s backlog. Martinez’s May 2016 narcotics and firearm case also wasn’t prosecuted because the Isleta Police Department ignored repeated requests for drug test results.

Career criminal David Straub got a free ride on his January 2016 criminal damage case because the discovery package APD detective turned over the DA was incomplete. And, the DA was forced to dismiss charges from Straub’s March 2016 arrest on multiple felonies because an APD detective turned in an incomplete evidence package.

Dejohni Orndorff’s free ride through the justice system came about after her November 2015 stolen property arrest. The DA had no choice but to dismiss the case after six APD officers failed to show up for their pre-trial interviews. Orndorff’s July 2016 arrest on multiple felonies also fell by the wayside because APD officers failed to appear for a motion’s hearing.

The DA was forced to dismiss Dominic Schuler’s burglary case because a District Court clerk failed to set the date for a scheduling conference by the mandated deadline.

The list of failed prosecutions goes on and on: Brandon Vigil (Burglary), Dominic Ballejos (Stolen Vehicle), Jennifer Plummer (Larceny), Roger Hocker  (Stolen Vehicle).

When you put it all together you find thousands of accused felons getting free rides through the system, not because they are innocent, but because of under-staffing, court imposed deadlines as well as bureaucratic and administrative missteps.

News 13 asked Chief Geier about the value of a major felony investigation that gets dismissed for an administrative reason? “It’s of no value because if it gets dismissed it’s almost like, (from) the detective’s perspective, why bother. Why did they put all that effort in if this is the end result?”

“Unfortunately there are too many cases left behind that action should have been taken on and need to be taken on. But we just don’t have the people to get things going,” DA Torrez says.

State legislators set the District Attorney’s budget. This year, Raul Torrez is asking for a $5.4 million increase to handle the felony case backlog.

“The reality is that Bernalillo County accounts for 50 percent of the property crime, 50 percent of the homicides, 70 percent of the auto thefts and this office receives about 26 percent of the appropriated funds for (statewide) prosecutors,” DA Torrez says. “So in addition to having a police department that is under-resourced, you have a prosecution office that is dramatically under-resourced.”

“If these cases go unanswered that only emboldens criminals in this city,” says Assistant District Attorney David Murphy, who supervises the general prosecutions division. “This is a big deal to average everyday citizens. It’s a big deal to victims of our major crimes. It’s a big deal to my neighbors.”

“I would agree that the system is broken but it’s not irreparable,” Chief Geier says.

“This is not something that is either so complicated or so expensive that it can’t be fixed. It’s simply finding the political will and the community voice to make it a reality,” according to DA Torrez. “The reality is that we haven’t paid for a criminal justice system that can actually provide real justice,” Torrez says.

Assistant District Attorney Candace Coulson is assigned the unpleasant job of calling crime victims and letting them know the accused offender in their case is not going to be prosecuted. “I feel bad because it’s our job to hold people accountable when they break the law and we’re not going to be able to do that,” Coulson says.

“We’re not going to make a serious dent in the crime problem in this community until you have more police officers and more prosecutors. Until you can really bring accountability and let people know that there are consequences associated with criminal conduct you’re not going to make a dent,” Raul Torrez says.

Click here to watch Larry Barker’s extended interview with DA Raul Torrez

District Attorney Raul Torrez addresses the challenges facing the Bernalillo County Prosecutor’s office, how we got there, and how to fix it.

Full Story: Justice Denied: Thousands of Albuquerque accused criminals aren’t prosecuted

SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – It’s a little known fund stockpiled in Santa Fe, valued at $44 million. Take a close look at the details surrounding this multi million-dollar bankroll. If you read the fine print, you’ll find it’s a retirement plan created by state legislators, for state legislators. And, it’s one of the most unusual pension plans in the country.

“The New Mexico (legislator’s pension) plan in certain respects, especially the way that it calculates the retirement benefit, is a bit of a horse of a different color,” says Keith Brainard, Research Director for the National Association of State Retirement Administrators (NASRA).

Retirement plans depend on employee payroll deductions and employer contributions for funding. As an example, a school teacher making $43,553 a year pays $4,601 annually to the Educational Retirement Board. The teacher’s school kicks in another $5,977. If you are a state employee, 8.92 percent of your paycheck is earmarked for PERA. New Mexico chips in another 16.99 percent of your salary. That’s how pension plans work. Well, that’s how most pensions work.

“This is the first retirement plan that I’ve seen in the public sector that is not based on a salary or wage,” says NASRA’s Keith Brainard.

Unlike other pension plans across the country, it’s taxpayers who mostly fund the “New Mexico Legislative Retirement Plan.” Where school teachers shell out thousands of dollars every year towards their retirement, state legislators annually contribute just $600 a year. Since 2003, lawmakers have diverted tens of millions of dollars from oil and gas revenue to fund their pensions. During last year’s Special Session, lawmakers reduced the taxpayer contribution to their pension fund from $2.4 million to $900,000.

Legislators justify their retirement plan because, as a Citizen’s Legislature, members do not receive a salary. New Mexico is the only state in the country with an unpaid legislature. Lawmakers receive $161 in per diem for each day the legislature is in session. The per diem is a reimbursement for expenses, not a salary.

“If we’re ever a paid legislature our retirement will be so much higher than it is now and cost the taxpayers so much more it will be pitiful,” says Senate Minority leader Stuart Ingle. “(The legislative pension) is something that will give somebody a little bit of a benefit for serving in a non-paying job for these years.”

Legislative retirement benefits are calculated by a formula involving per diem and years of service. The longer a member serves the more money they make in retirement. A lawmaker who has served ten years in the Roundhouse can retire at any age and receive full benefits. Not bad for working 30 or 60 days a year.

For example, John Ryan retired last year after serving 11 years in the State Senate. Ryan’s annual pension is $11,688. Former Senate President Pro Tem Manny Aragon served 29 years in the legislature and collects $30,815 a year for life. Former House Appropriations Chair Kiki Saavedra takes home $39,316 after a 37 year career at the State Capitol.

Today, so much money has been poured into the taxpayer supported Legislative Retirement Plan that it is overfunded at 151 percent. That means the lawmaker’s pension fund has $14 million more than it needs to pay future benefits. Compare that to the teacher’s retirement plan (Educational Retirement Board) which is funded at 63 percent. PERA’s State Employee Division also lacks enough assets to meet future liabilities. The State Employee plan is funded at 66.2 percent.

“Almost every public pension plan in the country these days is underfunded which means that they have more in obligations than they do in assets,” says NASRA’s Keith Brainard. “With regard to the New Mexico Legislative Pension Plan (it has) accumulated much more in assets than (it has) in obligations. I’m not familiar with any public pension plan that’s funded at that level right now,” Brainard says.

Albuquerque State Rep. Jim Dines says there is a better use for the $900,000 lawmakers spend annually to fund their retirement. “When we take a look at what is needed on everything from public safety to education, absolutely (there is a better use for that money).”

“When our teachers and public employees in the state of New Mexico have their fund, which is their future retirement, in the 60 percent range of being funded and the legislature on the other hand is 151 percent, that makes no sense to me at all,” Dines said. Rep. Dines is one of only a handful of state legislators who do not participate in the Legislative Retirement Plan.

“Nine-hundred-thousand dollars is clearly too much because (the lawmaker pension fund) is more over-funded now than it was when we tried to fix it last Spring in a Special Session,” Speaker of the House Brian Egolf says. “I do think it would be appropriate to suspend those payments basically in their entirety until the pension gets more in line with where it should be.”

“It’s a little curious that the state continues to make contributions to the plan when the actuaries have indicated that no contributions are required,” NASRA’s Keith Brainard says. “At the same time the state is not contributing the full required amount to the other big pension plans in the state, the one for state employees, local government employees and school teachers. (They) are not getting anywhere close to the full required contribution that they should be receiving,” Brainard says.

Rep. Dines says when his constituents learn the details of the lawmaker’s pension plan, “They’re astounded.”

Sen. Ingle says he would like to see the lawmaker’s $600 contribution to the pension fund be increased. “It’s generous in the fact that we don’t contribute much in it. It wasn’t my idea. I wanted it to be higher,” Sen. Ingle says. “I’ve tried a time or two and can’t get the votes to do it. I’d love to get to at least a thousand dollars a year and that’s still very reasonable. But I only have one vote. I can get a few votes but not enough.”

KRQE News 13 asked Sen. Ingle what it would take to see change in the Legislative Retirement Plan? His response, “Twenty-two votes in the Senate and 36 in the House.”

Rep. Dines says he will urge his colleagues to enact changes to the pension plan at next year’s 60 day session. That thought is echoed by Speaker of the House Egolf. “I have no doubt that the issue (will be) at the top of the mind with a new administration and with the next legislature,” Speaker Egolf says. “We’re going to be getting into this and making sure that it’s on the path to being solved.”

“I’m sure that I’m not, on this issue, the most popular person in the Roundhouse,” Rep. Dines says. “But I think a lot of people who have gotten to know me up here understand that I feel this is a matter of fairness and principle and needs to be acted on.”

ALBUQUERQUE, NM (KRQE) – It’s a case study in how not to build a public works project. When it comes to botched construction, ground zero is Albuquerque’s West Side, home to one of the biggest public works screw-ups in the city.

“I’d say it’s a pretty big blunder,” says Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Quality Authority Chief Operating Officer John Stomp.

“It’s been devastating,” says Albuquerque businessman Van Barber.

Albuquerque resident Yolanda Sandoval-Montoya says, “I’m more than angry. I’m fed up. I want to cry.”

The ‘West Side Yucca Sewer Interceptor’ is a publicly financed $7,160,000 construction project designed to replace a section of Albuquerque’s aging and outdated sewer system. When complete, the project will bring a state of the art sewer line to thousands of people living in neighborhoods near West Central Avenue.

An Albuquerque construction firm called AUI, Inc. was awarded the lucrative contract. Beginning in November 2016 residential streets were closed, the pavement was bulldozed, and a mile long line of 42-inch sewer pipes were laid in 30-foot deep trenches on a route weaving through Albuquerque’s west side.

“My initial response was, this is not good,” says the Water Utility Authority’s John Stomp. “Honestly it’s embarrassing for us and for the contractor to go out there and say this is wrong, we have to redo it again,” Stomp says.

For sewer systems to work properly they must be installed at a specific depth and slope. However, due to a surveying error, major segments of the West Side Sewer Project were mislaid by as much as two feet.

“Maybe an inch, maybe a tenth or something like that would be acceptable. But being two feet off is clearly a major problem,” says Stomp. “For sewer line projects like this to miss by two feet … I haven’t seen anything like this before. And I have been doing this a long time. I’ve watched a lot of sewers, storm sewers, water line pipes going in and I can’t say that I’ve seen something like this,” according to John Stomp whose career in water resources spans 30 years.

Because AUI botched the job, the Albuquerque based construction company is on the hook for the repairs which will cost the firm about $1 million.

“About half of the job they did correct and the other half they’re going to have to redo,” Stomp said. “They have to go back out there and cut the pavement again, remove the sewer and relocate the sewer in the right elevation. They’re going to tear all the work out that they put in and re-lay the sewer,” Stomp says.

The construction errors will set back completion of the project by about eight months to September 2018.

“It’s been tough on me,” says West Central Ave. businessman Van Barber. “I’ve got neighbors that have their homes for sale. They can’t sell their homes. Some of these are rental properties. They can’t rent their properties. And it’s just been a burden for the whole community,” Barber says.

Yolanda Sandoval-Montoya lives in the construction zone. She says the disruptions to daily life over the last year have been unbearable. For example, when the construction crew dug a 30-foot trench at the end of her driveway Yolanda and her family was forced to walk two blocks or use a shuttle bus to come and go from their home.

“We’re tired of it,” Sandoval-Montoya says. “They’ve invaded us long enough and now to find out that they’re going to be here longer because they made a mistake? Get it done right the first time and leave us alone,” Sandoval-Montoya said.

So how does AUI explain its $1 million fumble? Well, they don’t. AUI President Darrin Howells declined to be interviewed. Instead, the construction firm sent a written statement that provided no excuses, no explanations and no apologies.

“This is a good lesson for us to make sure that when we have projects of this magnitude that we should be checking their work more frequently,” says John Stomp.

READ Statement from AUI »

Photos: Maps of pipe work on West Central

Photos: Maps of pipe work on West Central

[Photo caption: Map of pipe work on West Central]

[Photo caption: Map of pipe work on south side of West Central]

[Photo caption: Map of pipe work on West Central]