CARRIZOZO - A man charged in Las Cruces District Court with 16 counts of forgery, two counts of fraud, 12 counts of receiving stolen property of less than $250, one count of possession of drug paraphernalia and one count of possession or use of an altered, forged or fictitious license has pleaded guilty to similar crimes in Lincoln County.

Richard Crenshaw has agreed to plead no contest to two counts of fraud over $500, two counts of forgery, one count of unlawful use of an identification card, one count of larceny of $250 or less and one count of receiving stolen property. Under the agreement, the state dismissed one count of fraud, two counts of larceny and 36 counts of unlawful use of an identification card.

Ruidoso Police arrested Crenshaw, 29, on June 1 after an investigation that began in April when residents of Ruidoso and Ruidoso Downs started reporting checks being stolen from their mailboxes. Those checks would reappear with a different name in the "pay to" line and a different amount. Police obtained video of Crenshaw making purchases at Walmart in Ruidoso Downs with stolen checks. Crenshaw would then return the merchandise for a cash refund.

Cpl. Mike Weaver said Crenshaw has been stealing and "washing" checks all over southern New Mexico for several years.


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