Albuquerque Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Carjacking Charge

U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Mexico
December 5, 2013

ALBUQUERQUE—Manuel Torrez, 33, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, pleaded guilty this morning to an indictment charging him with carjacking. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Torrez will be sentenced to 84 months in federal prison, followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

Torrez was indicted in April 2013 and was charged with using force to take an automobile from another person in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, on March 17, 2013. During his plea hearing, Torrez pled guilty to the indictment and admitted that on March 17, 2013, he forcefully yanked a woman out of her truck, pushed the victim to the ground after a brief struggle, took the victim’s car keys, and drove away in her truck.

Torrez was arrested on local charges shortly after the carjacking and was held in state custody until he was transferred to federal custody in July 2013. He remains detained pending his sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

Torrez was prosecuted as part of a federal anti-violence initiative that targets “the worst of the worst” offenders for federal prosecution. Under this initiative, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement agencies work with New Mexico’s District Attorneys and state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to target violent or repeat offenders for federal prosecution with the goal of removing repeat offenders from communities in New Mexico for as long as possible.

The case was investigated by the Albuquerque Field Office of the FBI and the Albuquerque Police Department, with assistance from the 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office, and it is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jon K. Stanford.