Two Arraigned On Heroin Charges

By John Larson

SOCORRO - A Socorro man and woman were both arraigned in Magistrate Court Monday, Dec. 7, on charges of trafficking heroin with intent to sell.
Kevin McDaniel, 31, and Denalda Baca, 22, were arrested Friday, Dec. 4, following a vandalism incident on Hope Farms Road.
According to the criminal complaint, Officer Dennis Sedillo was on the lookout for the driver of a white car with tinted windows that had been called in as shooting a paintball gun at a residence on Hope Farms Road.
The car was spotted, and after a short chase down Otero, South Main, and Tierra Bonita, the driver, McDaniel, slowed down and jumped out “while the car was still in motion, and ran from the vehicle towards the ditch” on Tierra Bonita.
As other police units arrived, a woman in the vehicle, Denalda Baca, attempted to flee on foot but was captured.
Officer Joseph Reichenbach apprehended McDaniel as the suspect was trying to hide under a trailer.
While conducting a routine pat down, Officer Stanley Montano found in McDaniel’s pocket a clear plastic baggie containing 4 grams of a white substance which later tested positive for heroin.
The criminal complaint stated that McDaniel’s “manner to be consistent with that of being under the influence of heroin.”
An NCIC check showed McDaniel to have had four previous DWI arrests.
Baca was read her rights but refused to confirm that she understand them, saying “[expletive] you guys.”
While in the police car, Baca began kicking the windows and had to be hobble strapped (a technique in which the suspect’s wrists and ankles are bound together).
Both were incarcerated at the Socorro County Detention Center after being processed.
Charges against McDaniel include three felonies; trafficking a controlled substance (heroin) with intent to distribute, aggravated fleeing a law enforcement officer, and DWI; and resisting arrest, a misdemeanor.
McDaniel’s preliminary hearing in Magistrate Court is set for Friday, Dec. 18.
Truth or Consequences lawyer Albert J. Costales is the defense attorney.
Denalda Baca was arraigned on trafficking heroin with intent to distribute and resisting arrest. Baca has been released on a $10,000 bond, awaiting her preliminary hearing at 1 p.m. on Jan. 6, 2010 in Magistrate Court.

Two Arraigned On Heroin Charges