Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

ALBUQUERQUE – Gilbert Dutchover, 58, of Roswell, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to violating the federal firearms laws.  The plea agreement recommends an 18-month prison sentence followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

Dutchover was arrested on May 5, 2017, on an indictment charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition on Aug. 18, 2014, in Chaves County, N.M.  According to the indictment, Dutchover was previously convicted of unlawful carrying of a firearm into a licensed liquor establishment, being a felon in possession of a firearm or destructive device, receiving stolen property and cocaine trafficking. 

During today’s proceedings, Dutchover pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that on Aug. 18, 2014, law enforcement officers located a pistol and ammunition in his garage during the execution of a search warrant on his residence.  Dutchover further admitted that he was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition because of his status as a convicted felon.  A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Chaves County Sheriff’s Office and the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Luis A. Martinez and Selesia L. Winston of the U.S. Attorney’s Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting the case.

The Pecos Valley Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office, Carlsbad Police Department and Artesia Police Department and is part of the HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force.  The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988.  HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.

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