Former treasurer candidate charged with felonies

The former Republican candidate for Quay County treasurer and former deputy treasurer was charged today with felony charges of fraud and tampering with a public record.

An arrest warrant was issued Friday for Albenita Rene Rael, 50, of Tucumcari. She was not in custody at the Quay County Detention Center as of Friday afternoon.

Both charges are fourth-degree felonies that can lead up to 18 months in prison and up to a $5,000 fine.

According to the criminal complaint filed by New Mexico State Police, Rael twice removed a property she owned from the delinquent-tax property list, preventing it from being reported to the state and put up for auction.

She owed about $457.54 in taxes on the property for the past three years, plus a $125 fine.

County Treasurer Patsy Gresham printed a list of the county’s delinquent properties and noticed Rael’s was not on it. A team from Tyler Technologies later determined Rael had changed her account status to keep the property from being listed as delinquent, then changed it back after the list was filed at the county clerk’s office.

Rael withdrew from the GOP treasurer’s race on July 24 after she was confronted with the alleged document alteration. She was unopposed to replace Gresham, who was term-limited. No Democrat filed to run for the seat during the primary election.

Gresham said Rael resigned as deputy treasurer on July 23, though the complaint indicates she was fired. Rael, reached by the Quay County Sun shortly after she stepped down, said she did so for personal reasons.

The complaint stated Rael possibly was moving to Amarillo on Friday to start a new job there the following Monday.

The Republican Party of Quay County in August chose Theresa Lafferty, former office manager of the Arch Hurley Conservancy District in Tucumcari, as the new GOP treasurer’s candidate. Quay County manager Daniel Zamora said during a recent county commission meeting that Lafferty was undergoing training for her new position as deputy county treasurer.

More information will be reported in the next edition of the Quay County Sun.