A judge in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, who served since 2011, resigned on March 3 after the arrest of Cristian Ortega-Lopez, a 23-year-old Venezuelan national found living in a guest unit of the judge’s Las Cruces home, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
FOX NEWS -- Ortega-Lopez was arrested on February 28 following a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) probe that began in January. The investigation revealed that he had illegally crossed into the U.S. from Mexico in December 2023 and was living with other undocumented immigrants. He also had access to firearms.
The U.S. Department of Justice stated that investigators found social media posts showing Ortega-Lopez posing with several weapons. Some of these were allegedly provided by the judge’s daughter, who allowed him to “possess and sometimes shoot various firearms.”
In his resignation letter to the chief judge of the Third Judicial District, the judge wrote: “Working with each of you has been a deeply rewarding experience, for which I’ll always be grateful,” Fox News reported. His career spanned 14 years, following earlier service in law enforcement.
HSI officially charged Ortega-Lopez with illegal presence in the U.S. and with ties to the Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua, which the Trump administration has recently spotlighted. Federal authorities say he not only lived with undocumented immigrants but had access to firearms — a violation for non-citizens.
Former President Donald Trump called Tren de Aragua a designated foreign terrorist organization, saying:
“Tren de Aragua (TdA) is a foreign terrorist organization with thousands of members, many of whom have illegally entered the U.S., wage irregular warfare, and engage in hostile actions against our country.”