Las Cruces woman pleads guilty to methamphetamine trafficking

ALBUQUERQUE - A Las Cruces woman has pleaded guilty to federal drug trafficking charges after more than 40 grams of methamphetamine was recovered during a traffic stop.

According to court documents, investigators with the FBI Safe Streets Gang Task Force and the Las Cruces/Dona Ana Metro Narcotics unit conducted a joint investigation into Ivory Hernandez, 43, for trafficking, drugs, stolen vehicles and firearms. On May 7, 2025, investigators attempted to conduct a traffic stop on Hernandez's vehicle between Anthony and Las Cruces, New Mexico. Hernandez initially slowed down and pulled off the road but failed to fully stop before eventually complying with officers' commands. During the stop, a canine trained to detect methamphetamine alerted to the presence of drugs inside the vehicle. A subsequent search revealed approximately 40.5 net grams of pure methamphetamine and a soft case containing drug packaging and weighing materials. Hernandez admitted she was transporting the drugs within the United States and intended to transfer them to another person.

Hernandez pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. At sentencing, Hernandez faces not less than five years and up to life in prison.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison made the announcement on behalf of the Homeland Security Task Force.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Devon Aragon Martinez is prosecuting the case.

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Region II CORE 7 is comprised of agents and officers from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Customs and Border Protection - Office of Field Operations (OFO), U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) and Air and Marine (AMO), Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), United States Department of the Interior - Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Joint Task Force North (JTF-N), United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), United States Marshal Service (USMS), Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DSS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Texas Department of Public Safety (TXDPS), El Paso Police Department (EPPD), New Mexico State Police (NMSP), West Texas / New Mexico High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA), Albuquerque Police Department, New Mexico Sixth Judicial District, Las Cruces/Dona Ana County Metro Narcotics Agency, and the prosecution is being led by the Office of the United States Attorney for the Districts of Western Texas and New Mexico.