Former New Mexico candidate gets 80 years for shootings at Democrats’ homes

Solomon Peña, a former candidate for the New Mexico House of Representatives, has been sentenced to 80 years in prison for orchestrating a politically motivated shooting spree and plotting to murder witnesses to obstruct justice, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors said Peña, 42, ran for New Mexico’s District 14 in the November 2022 midterm elections and, after losing to Democratic incumbent Miguel Garcia, falsely claimed the election was rigged. He pressured members of the Bernalillo County Board of Commissioners not to certify the results, but they refused.

Peña then recruited Jose Trujillo and Demetrio Trujillo to carry out shootings at the homes of several Democratic public officials. He provided them with cash, instructions, and addresses, and personally participated in one of the attacks.

One shooting involved a fully automatic machine gun, with rounds striking areas where children had recently been or were sleeping, according to prosecutors.

After his arrest, Peña tried to have Jose and Demetrio Trujillo killed to stop them from testifying, offering fellow inmates money and a vehicle in exchange for their deaths.

On March 23, a federal jury found Peña guilty on all counts, including conspiracy, being a felon in possession of a firearm, four counts of intimidation and interference with federally protected activities, four counts of using or carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and three counts of solicitation to commit a crime of violence.

Peña was sentenced to 960 months—80 years—in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and must pay restitution and a $250,000 fine.

Jose Trujillo pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including conspiracy, interference with federally protected activities, and drug trafficking, and was sentenced to just over three years in prison. Demetrio Trujillo pleaded guilty to conspiracy, multiple firearms offenses, and interference charges, and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

“Violence and intimidation have no place in our elections,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison said in a statement. “This sentence shows that through the tireless work of our agents and prosecutors we will protect our democracy and bring offenders to justice.”