Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

ALBUQUERQUE – Henry Lujan, 23, of Albuquerque, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court to 87 months in prison for violating the Hobbs Act by participating in the armed robbery of a Walmart store in Albuquerque in Oct. 2014.  Henry Lujan will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.

On Jan. 21, 2015, Henry Lujan and five co-defendants were charged with violating the Hobbs Act and federal firearms laws in a five-count indictment.  Count 1 charged Castillo and five other Albuquerque residents, Raymond Castillo, 27, Reyes Lujan, 27, Daniel Maestas, 36, Johnny Ramirez, 31, and Frank Gallegos, 31, with conspiring to violate the Hobbs Act.  Count 2 charged the six men with violating the Hobbs Act by robbing a Walmart Store in Bernalillo County, N.M., on Oct. 29, 2014.  Count 3 charged Castillo with brandishing a firearm during the robbery of the Walmart store, and Count 4 charges Maestas with using and carrying a firearm during the robbery.  Count 5 charged Ramirez, Gallegos, Reyes Lujan and Henry Lujan with aiding and abetting the use of firearms during the robbery.

The indictment was superseded in May 2015, by adding a new defendant, Reynaldo Marquez, 26, of Albuquerque, and two new counts.  One of the new counts charged Castillo and Marquez with interfering with interstate commerce by robbing a 7-11 convenience store located in Bernalillo County on Dec. 7, 2014.  The other charged Marquez with discharging a firearm during that robbery.

On Aug. 3, 2016, Henry Lujan pled guilty to Count 2 of the superseding indictment charging him with aiding and abetting an interference with interstate commerce.  In entering the guilty plea, Henry Lujan admitted that on Oct. 29, 2014, he and his co-defendants stole a safe filled with money and other valuables during the armed robbery of a Walmart.

Henry Lujan’s six co-defendants previously have entered guilty pleas.  Reyes Lujan was sentenced on March 8, 2016, to 71 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, Gallegos was sentenced on Sept. 8, 2016, to 71 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, Ramirez was sentenced on Oct. 6, 2016, to 71 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, and Reynaldo Marquez was sentenced on Dec. 1, 2016, to 120 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release, and Raymond Castillo was sentenced on Dec. 8, 2016, to 216 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.  The remaining co-defendant is in custody pending a sentencing hearing.

This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Albuquerque Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Norman Cairns and Samuel A. Hurtado are prosecuting this case.

This case is being prosecuted under a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution.  Under this initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders primarily based on their prior criminal convictions for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible.  Because New Mexico’s violent crime rate, on a per capita basis, is one of the highest in the nation, New Mexico’s law enforcement community is collaborating to target repeat offenders from counties with the highest violent crime rates, including Bernalillo County, N.M., under this initiative.

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