Man sentenced in meth case

A Tucumcari man was sentenced Sept. 3 to nine years in prison, with six years suspended, after local police found 39 baggies of methamphetamine at his home in February.

Danny G. Benavidez, 55, pleaded guilty to trafficking controlled substances by distribution, a second-degree felony, during a plea-deal hearing in June.

A second-degree felony count of trafficking controlled substances (possession with intent to distribute) and a misdemeanor count of possession of drug paraphernalia were dropped, according to court documents obtained online.

District Judge Albert Mitchell Jr. also sentenced Benavidez to two years of parole, five years of probation, that he pay fees and costs for the criminal case, that he pay $100 to the Quay County Domestic Violence Program during the first year of his probation and that he undergo a treatment evaluation while serving at the Department of Corrections or during probation.

The Region V Drug Task Force on Feb. 20 executed a search warrant at Benavidez’s home in the 500 block of North Second Street in Tucumcari. Officers found 39 baggies containing meth.

Assistant District Attorney Heidi Adams said “it wasn’t just a few bags of meth” and that the 39 bags were found in a plastic cigarette lighter, under a bathroom sink in a Cool Whip container and in a shed on the property, along with scales and handwritten notes.

Adams said Benavidez wasn’t a good candidate for probation and that he should be sentenced to the Department of Corrections for four years.

Adams noted Benavidez’s previous criminal record dated at least 10 years ago, including forgery, embezzlement and driving with a revoked license.

Benavidez’s attorney, public defender Anna Aragon, urged probation, saying he was “forthcoming” with his involvement in the criminal charges and that he was holding the meth for someone else.

“He chose to take responsibility rather than act as a snitch,” Aragon said. “He is 54 years old and had issues with prescription drugs due to injuries.”

“I made a bad mistake,” Benavidez said to Mitchell in the courtroom.

Mitchell ordered Benavidez to report to the Department of Corrections this Thursday.