NM makes national headlines after Dem judge tied to gang suspect resigns

Doña Ana County Magistrate Judge Joel Cano has officially resigned amid swirling controversy surrounding a federal investigation into a Venezuelan national linked to a violent transnational gang who was arrested at the judge’s Las Cruces home.

Cano, who has served on the bench since 2011, submitted his resignation on March 3 without citing a reason. However, the move came just days after federal agents raided a property owned by Cano and his wife, Nancy, arresting 23-year-old Cristhian Ortega-Lopez, a man currently facing federal firearm charges and under scrutiny for alleged ties to the notorious Tren de Aragua gang. The case has since drawn national attention, with outlets such as Fox News, Newsweek, The Daily Caller, and New York Post picking up the story. Even the British Daily Mail has reported on the incident.

In his resignation letter, Cano wrote, “Working with each of you has been a very rewarding experience for which I will remain eternally grateful.” His last day on the job was March 21, the same day he held his final hearings, according to court records.

The arrest has ignited concern over how a man accused of gang affiliation and illegal firearm possession came to reside on property owned by a sitting judge. Homeland Security Investigations executed a search warrant on Feb. 28 at the Cano residence, where Ortega-Lopez was found. Agents also retrieved four firearms from a nearby house owned by April Cano, Nancy Cano’s daughter, according to court documents.

A criminal complaint alleges that Ortega-Lopez admitted to handling and firing these weapons, and prosecutors presented social media images allegedly showing him posing with the firearms. In one of the exhibits introduced in court, Ortega-Lopez is even pictured alongside Judge Cano.

The Venezuelan national, who is in the U.S. unlawfully, was charged with being an alien in possession of firearms and ammunition, a felony that could carry up to 15 years in federal prison. He was previously caught by Border Patrol agents after crossing the southern border near Eagle Pass, Texas, but was released due to overcrowding and placed on humanitarian parole, according to federal records.

Prosecutors assert that Ortega-Lopez poses both a flight risk and a threat to public safety. “He is believed to have ties to the Tren de Aragua,” a criminal organization originating in Venezuela, prosecutors argue in motions to keep him detained without bond.

Court records reveal that Ortega-Lopez moved to El Paso and then to Las Cruces, where he met Nancy Cano while working construction jobs. She reportedly offered him housing in a detached casita behind the Cano residence. He listed the address in a 2024 immigration relief application.

Further troubling for federal prosecutors is Ortega-Lopez’s alleged access to multiple firearms through April Cano. “She possessed a large number of firearms,” court documents state, “and allowed him to hold and sometimes shoot various firearms,” including rifles and handguns that later appeared in social media posts.

During a detention hearing on March 14, U.S. Magistrate Judge Damian Martinez initially leaned toward releasing Ortega-Lopez, saying, “I don’t think [Judge Cano] would just let anybody live in his property.” Prosecutors swiftly appealed, challenging Martinez’s decision and noting his request for pretrial services to assess Nancy Cano as a potential third-party custodian, even though the arrest occurred at her residence.

As of now, Ortega-Lopez remains behind bars at the Doña Ana County Detention Center pending another detention hearing.

While Joel Cano has not been charged with any crimes, his sudden resignation and the national spotlight on his association with an alleged gang-linked individual have prompted significant scrutiny. Some comentators have described the situation as “deeply alarming,” raising broader concerns about judicial integrity and border enforcement gaps.