Drug Raid Nets Meth, Guns, Cash; Suspects May Face Federal Charges
By JIM SNYDER
Journal Staff Writer
ALBUQUERQUE — Police say a major methamphetamine distribution wholesaler was put out of business Wednesday morning after heavily armed narcotics agents raided a home in Albuquerque’s upscale Four Hills neighborhood.
Inside, authorities found a cache of weapons, cash and drugs.
Taken into custody during the raid were Pat Gene Patterson, 28, of Grants; Daniel B. McCoy, 28, of Grants; Valerie Lucero; and Michael Chacon, said Region One Narcotics Task Force commander Lt. Matt Thomas.
The four were wholesaling between $100,000 and $200,000 a month in meth, most of it imported from Mexico into the Albuquerque area, Thomas said.
The bust will create a temporary vacuum in the meth supply for Albuquerque, he said.
Neighbor Lee McKinley - whose children played in their driveway not far from the drugs and weapons - said he saw people coming in and out of the home at all hours of the day and night.
But the neighbors were quiet and did not hold loud parties or do anything to attract much attention, he said. He said he knew something was wrong, though, because they flaunted their money with expensive cars and motorcycles.
Another neighbor was upset when he learned about the business his neighbors were allegedly in.
“I think it’s terrible. I thought they were good people,” Roy Hanson said.
Ski-masked task force members found about 25 weapons, including high-powered assault rifles, a semiautomatic machine gun, shotguns, hunting rifles and pistols inside the home during the search, Thomas said.
Nearly all the weapons were loaded. Police also found a bulletproof vest and nightvision goggles.
Bernalillo County sheriff’s deputies, Albuquerque police, agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other task force members also found $25,000 in cash - including $10,000 that was hidden inside a light fixture - in the home, located in the 700 block of Stagecoach SE.
They also found 1 pound of crystal meth with an estimated street value of $15,000 to $18,000, and half an ounce of cocaine, Thomas said.
The four suspects are expected to face state and possibly federal felony charges.
The investigation leading to Wednesday’s raid took a year, Thomas said.
Copyright 2007 Albuquerque Journal