Jal Accountant Arraigned on Federal Fraud and Identity Theft Charges

ALBUQUERQUE—This morning, Roger L. Baeza, 31, of Jal, New Mexico, was arraigned on an 81-count indictment charging him with 78 counts of securities fraud, one count of access device fraud, and two counts of aggravated identity theft. Baeza entered a not guilty plea to the indictment during his arraignment hearing.
U.S. Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales said that Baeza is charged with defrauding two Jal-based businesses, Lea Energy Services LLC and Fulfer Oil & Cattle Company LCC, of approximately $572,000 between June 2010 and February 2012. During that period, Baeza was employed as the in-house accountant by the owners of the two businesses.
According to the indictment, from June 4, 2010 to February 27, 2012, Baeza forged checks belonging to Lea Energy Services LLC and the Fulfer Oil & Cattle Company LCC on 78 separate occasions and thus defrauded his employers of an aggregate of $311,960.08. Count 79 of the indictment alleges that, during that same period, Baeza unlawfully used a credit card issued to his employers to defraud his employers of an aggregate of $189,267.02. Counts 80 and 81 each charge Baeza with unlawfully using the identification of one of his employers to unlawfully withdraw money from his employers’ business accounts.
The maximum penalty for a conviction on each of the 78 securities fraud counts and the access device fraud count is 10 years of imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. The maximum penalty for a conviction on each of the two aggravated identity theft counts is a mandatory two-year term of imprisonment, to be served consecutive to any other prison sentence imposed and a $250,000 fine.
Following his arrest on a criminal complaint on November 6, 2012, Baeza is on conditions of release pending trial.
The case was investigated by the Roswell Resident Agency of the FBI and the New Mexico State Police and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Norman Cairns.
Allegations in criminal complaints and indictments are only accusations. Criminal defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Las Vegas Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Robbing Three Banks in May 2011

ALBUQUERQUE—This morning in federal court in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Justin A. Wolaver, 27, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment for robbing three banks, including a bank in Raton, New Mexico, in May 2011. Wolaver will be on supervised release for five years after he completes his prison sentence. He also was ordered to pay full restitution to each of the three victim banks.
U.S. Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales said that Wolaver pled guilty on July 27, 2012, to (1) the armed robbery of Bank of America in Hudson, Florida, on May 2, 2011; (2) the robbery of Chase Bank in Flagstaff, Arizona, on May 9, 2011; and (3) the armed robbery of the Bank of America in Raton on May 23, 2011.
Court records reflect that Wolaver was arrested after robbing the Bank of America in Raton at gunpoint on May 23, 2011. Wolaver walked into the bank, approached the bank teller, displayed what appeared to be a handgun, and verbally demanded money. After the bank teller provided cash to Wolaver, he fled in a small, white sedan. Officers of the Raton Police Department followed the sedan with lights and sirens as it left the bank. Officers of the New Mexico State Police and Colfax County Sheriff’s Office joined the pursuit when Wolaver tried to outrun the police. Wolaver was apprehended approximately 40 miles south of Raton. After his arrest, Wolaver confessed to robbing the Bank of America in Raton. He also confessed to robbing two other banks earlier that month.
Wolaver has been in federal custody since May 24, 2011. On July 27, 2012, Wolaver agreed to waive his right to be prosecuted in the judicial districts where he committed the out of state crimes and to plead guilty to the bank robberies in Florida and Arizona in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.
The case was investigated by the Albuquerque Field Office of the FBI, the Raton Police Department, the New Mexico State Police, and the Colfax County Sheriff’s Office and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shammara H. Henderson.