The Albuquerque Police Department in New Mexico is currently conducting an investigation into alleged misconduct by officers assigned to the DWI unit. This comes after a fourth officer, Nelson Ortiz, resigned during the ongoing probe. Ortiz, who joined the department in January 2016 and was part of the DWI unit from 2018 to 2021, stepped down before an interview could be scheduled with investigators.
The probe, which also involves the FBI, focuses on officers who have worked in the unit in the past or are currently serving. So far, a total of five officers have been placed on administrative leave. Three officers, Justin Hunt, Honorio Alba, and Harvey Johnson, had previously resigned in connection to the investigation.
According to documents obtained by the Albuquerque Journal, the federal inquiry was initiated following an incident in August where an officer allegedly advised a driver to contact a specific attorney to avoid potential legal consequences. The investigation has honed in on DWI cases filed by certain officers that were later dismissed. Over 150 cases involving allegations of driving while intoxicated have been dropped as part of the ongoing scrutiny.
Notably, three Albuquerque police officers collectively filed 136 out of the 152 dismissed DWI cases, with a significant portion of these filings occurring last year. This accounted for approximately 10% of all such cases handled by the department in that year.
