FBI asks victims to come forward amid APD corruption investigation

Gabrielle Burkhart
·3 min read

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Could you have been the target of a public corruption scheme? If so, federal investigators want to talk to you.

The FBI Albuquerque Field Office is still investigating what News 13 has learned involves accusations that Albuquerque Police officers were getting paid to get DWI cases dismissed. Now, Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Albuquerque, is calling for potential victims to come forward amid the public corruption investigation.

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“Ongoing investigations are just something we can’t talk about,” Bujanda told KRQE on Monday. It’s a typical response from an FBI agent during an active investigation.

However, amid a federal public corruption investigation involving now former APD officers, Bujanda wants to address the public. “My whole reason for being here is I want to make sure that you have – you should have the confidence to be able to contact your local law enforcement,” Bujanda explained. “But more than that, you should have the confidence of reporting it to us, the FBI, and know that we will do something about it.”

News of the investigation blew wide open in January when federal agents raided the homes of Albuquerque police officers and a well-known defense attorney. So far, five Albuquerque police officers have resigned amid the federal and internal probe by APD, but no one is facing any criminal charges yet.

“Really, these hinge on someone doing the right thing, right?” Bujanda said. “Someone being within those networks, someone being a victim to one of these crimes and coming forward and just reporting that so that we can start to look at it,” he added. “Because these are very difficult investigations.”

While SAC Bujanda won’t talk specifics, he acknowledges cases like this impact public trust in law enforcement. “When people see that, they feel that these are the people that were hired to protect us,” explained Bujanda. “And now I’m not even sure I even want to call them. And that’s the last thing I want anyone to feel.”

Public corruption cases can generally take years, he explained, with investigative tactics shrouded in secrecy to ensure there’s accountability. When asked if it’s possible that a public official could go to federal prison for committing a public corruption crime, Bujanda replied, “Oh, most definitely. Yes, that happens all the time.”

While the FBI is known for tackling brazen crimes like bank robberies, terrorist threats, and kidnappings, public corruption cases are a priority, Bujanda said. “Public corruption within the FBI has the highest priority,” he said. “It’s our highest priority when it comes to overall criminal threats.”

“Not to say that it’s more important or less important than other things, but to us, that type of violation is something that is just not tolerated or should be tolerated by those that we serve,” Bujanda told KRQE News 13.

In this case, Bujanda said the public should expect to hear about the FBI’s conclusions soon. “We’ll get a conclusion,” he said. “We’ll get to a conclusion soon.”

“All those individuals that we see, that are wearing the badge, that are supposed to do the right thing all of the time, that they are doing the right job for us,” Bujanda explained. “And if someone sees that that’s not the case, or has information that could be helpful for this or any other investigation, they need to come forward. They need to reach out to us.”

The FBI wouldn’t comment when News 13 asked if this investigation could reach beyond just APD officers. “Like in any of these types of investigations, we’ll continue to follow the evidence,” Bujanda said.

Potential victims of public corruption schemes can contact the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or going to Tips.FBI.gov.

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