Press Release
☷Two Albuquerque Men Arraigned on Charges Relating to the Killing of a Federal Witness
Federal Bureau of Investigation ( By Press Release office)
May 04,2022
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Two Albuquerque men arraigned on charges relating to the killing of a federal witness ALBUQUERQUE , N . M . – Robert “Fat Head” Padilla , 45 , and Gary Coca , 49 , both of Albuquerque , were arraigned in federal court on April 27 on a four - count indictment charging them with retaliation against a witness . Padilla was further charged with one count of killing while engaged in drug trafficking , one count of using , carrying , brandishing , and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime and causing death through use of the firearm , and one count of tampering with a witness , victim or informant by physical force or threat . Both defendants will remain in custody pending trial , which has not been scheduled . A federal grand jury indicted Padilla and Coca on April 20 . According to the indictment and other court records , from about Sept . 17 , 2018 , to Sept . 10 , 2019 , Padilla allegedly engaged in trafficking cocaine , cocaine base , heroin and fentanyl . On July 22 , 2019 , Padilla and Coca allegedly killed a man who was a former federal witness in Las Vegas , New Mexico , in retaliation for the victim providing information to law enforcement . Around Nov . 25 , 2020 , Padilla allegedly used physical force against John Doe in an attempt to influence , delay and prevent John Doe from communicating to law enforcement information relating to drug trafficking and the murder of a federal witness . An indictment is only an allegation . A defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty . If convicted , Padilla and Coca face up to life in prison or death . The FBI investigated this case with assistance from the New Mexico State Police , New Mexico Corrections Department and Las Vegas Police Department . Assistant U . S . Attorneys from the Las Cruces Branch Office are prosecuting this case as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force program , a nationwide Department of Justice program that combines the resources and unique expertise of federal agencies , along with their local counterparts , in a coordinated effort to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations . # # #
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