A fifth officer from the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) tendered his resignation amidst an ongoing administrative inquiry into allegations of misconduct among DWI officers.
Joshua Montaño formally resigned on Wednesday, March 20, 2024. He had been with APD since January 2005 and had served within the DWI Unit since 2015.
The administrative investigation, initiated in January, centers on allegations of misconduct by officers currently or previously affiliated with the DWI Unit. Five officers, including Montaño, were identified as subjects of the investigation.
Aside from Montaño, four other APD officers have resigned during the investigation:
- Justin Hunt, who commenced service at APD in 2000, resigned on February 7, 2024.
- Honorio Alba, who began service at APD in 2014, resigned on February 29, 2024.
- Harvey Johnson, who commenced service at APD in 2014, resigned on March 13, 2024.
- Nelson Ortiz, who began service at APD in 2016, resigned on March 15, 2024.
According to APD, the investigation remains ongoing. At a press conference on 3/13/2024, APD’s civilian PIO, Gilbert Gallegos, mentioned that APD was still going forward with internal investigations despite officers resigning.
The FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office have yet to unseal any documents related to the search warrants or the raids carried out at various homes of APD officers, a local attorney’s office, and the residence of the attorney’s paralegal.
None of the officers or any other individuals mentioned in our reports, have been formally charged with any crimes.
Below is a copy of Joshua Montaño’s resignation letter and a letter from Montaño’s lawyer, Thomas Grover.
I hope that once these corrupt cops go on trial and are convicted they lose their retirement benefits!! However knowing this city/state even while sitting in prison their family’s get to spend that retirement money. Especially the Lt’s family getting that big city retirement check.
We need to call 911..
ACAB = All Cops Accept Bribes