The former New Mexico judge and his wife reportedly tried to hide the crimes of illegal immigrants who are believed to be members of Venezuela’s infamous Tren de Aragua gang.
Former Doña Ana County Magistrate Judge Joel Cano, 68, and his wife, Nancy Cano, 67, were arrested Thursday after federal agents stormed the Las Cruces home. The pair faces accusations of evidence that they are tampering in their allegations of harboring Christian Ortegalopez.
“Judges are responsible for supporting the laws of our country. It is awful for a former judge and his wife to engage in evidence that tamper with Tren de Aragua gang suspects who are accused of illegally owning firearms.”
“The US lawyers’ office is committed to dismantling this foreign terrorist organization by disrupting criminal operations in New Mexico. It starts with prosecuting people who support gang members, including judges.”
The former Mexican judge, wife, has been arrested for allegedly carrying illegal Tren de Aragua members
HSI Agents will escort former Doñaana County Magistrate Judge Joel Cano on Thursday, April 24, 2025. (Provided by KFOX14)
Ortega Lopez was placed on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) radar after he said he was illegally in the US and had a gun. He originally entered the country on December 15th, 2023 near Eagle Pass, Texas. He was taken into custody and released after being overcrowded at a US Border Patrol facility.
Ortega Lopez appears to have posted multiple images and videos on social media showing him with other illegal immigrants handling guns at Las Cruces shooting range, federal prosecutors said. Among the weapons was the Sig Sauer P365 pistol, an AR-15 rifle with a suppression device and other powerful guns and ammunition.
New Mexico judge resigns when TDA members allegedly arrested at home
His social media activities revealed things that suggested his relationship with Venezuelan gangs, including gang-related tattoos, hand gestures and clothing, prosecutors said. He also laughed at the $5,000 reward to catch TDA members, Attorney General Pam Bondy said.
She said there were two people in the image that had been beheaded.
In January, federal agents received hints that Ortega Lopez was living with other illegal immigrants on the property of Cano, who was still a judge at the time.
Authorities seized four guns during a search of the facility on February 28th.
Former Doña Ana County Magistrate Judge Joel Cano, 68, and his wife, Nancy Cano, 67, have been accused of carrying Christian Ortega Lopez, a suspect in the infamous Tren de Aragaa gang in Venezuela. (US District Court for the District of New Mexico, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency)
The four guns were seized along with three cell phones belonging to Ortega Lopez, and he was arrested. During the search, Ortega Lopez was allowed to call before being transported to the Doña Ana County Detention Center (DACDC).
He told the agent the phone he wanted to use is not among the recovered devices. The video call from DACDC showed Nancy Cano, holding a black iPhone, which is later considered Ortega’s fourth phone, prosecutors said.
On a March 7 call with Ortega Lopez, Nancy Cano is said to have contacted someone named “Michelle” on WhatsApp on the device before using her personal phone between Michelle and Ortega Lopez to promote a faceti time call.
On a call on April 20th, Nancy Cano and Ortega Lopez discussed deleting their Facebook account.
Former Doña Ana County Magistrate Judge Joel Cano, 68, and his wife, Nancy Cano, 67, are allegedly held Christian Ortega Lopez. (US District Court for the District of New Mexico)
On April 24, federal agents searched Cano’s home and found Ortega Lopez’s missing phone. During the questioning, Joel Cano admitted that he had destroyed the device with a hammer five weeks ago. Because he believed Ortega Lopez’s guilty photos and videos were included with the gun, and he threw them into the trash bin, Bondy said.
Forensic analysis of the recovered mobile phone revealed messages linked to Ortega’s alleged criminal activity, including links with TDA gangs and images with guns, authorities said.
Joel and Nancy Cano are in prison for up to 15 years.
The FBI arrested a Wisconsin judge and alleges that she had prevented the arrest of an illegal alien.
“The rule of law is very simple. It doesn’t matter what kind of work you are in. If you break the law, we will follow the facts and we will prosecute you,” Bondy said in a video message Friday.
Another judge who allegedly interfered in the arrest of illegal immigrants in Wisconsin is also facing federal charges. Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan, 65, allegedly confronted federal agents inside court on April 18, and ordered them to leave as he was about to arrest Eduardo Flores Lewis, a Mexican citizen who had been deported and recently charged with multiple counts of abuse-related batteries in the country.
Flores Lewis is said to have punched a man 30 times and attacked a woman, Bondy said. Both victims were in court when Dugan learned that the ice was outside to arrest him.
Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested Friday. (Retrieved by Fox News)
“After realising a valid immigration arrest warrant, Judge Dugan said the agent needs a judicial warrant, the Justice Department said in a news release Friday, and his lawyers are not normally used by the accused or attorneys through a restricted “ju judge door” exit. ”
The doorway led to a private corridor where Flores Lewis and his lawyer had left Dugan’s courtroom, prosecutors said. He was eventually arrested outside the court after a short leg pursuit.
Dugan is charged with hiding a person to prevent obstruction of lawsuits and arrests in front of a U.S. department or agency. She has faced up to six years in prison.
Mexico’s National Eduardo Flores Lewis is an illegal immigrant who has been accused of avoiding arrests by Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan of the United States immigration and customs enforcement agents. (DHS/Milwaukee Independent via AP)
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Flores Lewis was previously deported in 2013 and re-entered the United States illegally, authorities said.
“The sanctuary jurisdiction where criminal aliens put American communities at risk,” Assistant Attorney General Todd Blanche said. “This Department of Justice doesn’t hold back as local officials put politics in public safety. The reckless sanctuary city policy creates one class of sanctuary. Criminals. It was over then.”
