Font ResizeLAS CRUCES - A federal fugitive surrendered to the U.S. Marshals Service Wednesday night at the Santa Teresa Port of Entry after being on the run for several weeks, according to a news release.
Luis Carlos Ruiz-Torres, 32, a Mexican national, was charged with federal narcotics trafficking offenses and was believed to have fled to Mexico around Dec. 10.
Ruiz-Torres and 19 co-defendants were charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana in a 33-count federal indictment filed in March 2010. He was released in April on conditions he wear a GPS electronic monitoring device and submit to close supervision of pre-trial services personnel. In December, an arrest warrant was issued after Ruiz-Torres allegedly removed his monitoring device and absconded from supervision.
If convicted in federal court in Albuquerque, Ruiz-Torres faces a minimum 10-year term of imprisonment and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
