A former New Mexico judge has been arrested on an evidence tampering charge for allegedly destroying a phone belonging to a tenant who is accused of keeping guns at the property and suspected of being a member of a Venezuelan criminal gang.
Federal authorities said in court records that former Doña Ana County Magistrate Judge Jose Luis “Joel” Cano, who was arrested Thursday, told investigators that he believed photos or videos on the device would reflect negatively on the tenant and threw away what remained of it five weeks ago after smashing it with a hammer.
