BCSO arrests wanted fugitive hiding in homemade outhouse in Albuquerque

A wanted fugitive tried to disappear inside a homemade outhouse in Southwest Albuquerque, but Bernalillo County sheriff’s deputies and a U.S. Marshals Task Force team found him anyway. Jesse Bilbao was taken into custody after K-9 Hulk narrowed the search to the makeshift structure and a drone picked up a heat signature inside.

The search unfolded near 8010 Maplewood Rd., where authorities said the property offered a maze of sheds, vehicles, wood piles and other hiding places. That layout mattered: deputies were not searching open ground, but a cluttered lot where a fugitive could try to blend into the surroundings and stay out of sight.

K-9 Hulk led deputies to the homemade porta-potty, and BCSO drone operators then used thermal imaging to confirm someone was inside. After deputies gave commands and deployed OC vapor, Bilbao surrendered without further incident.

Bilbao was charged with felon in possession of a firearm and resisting, evading or obstructing an officer. His arrest illustrates how warrant enforcement in Bernalillo County increasingly depends on coordinated work between street deputies, specialized K-9 units and drone operators, especially when suspects hide on properties built to conceal movement and activity.

The case also underscores the public-safety value of active warrant tracking in a county that regularly faces repeat-offender and fugitive cases. The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office maintains a public warrant lookup portal for active warrants, and the agency says residents can verify information through metro.nmcourts.gov or by calling 505-841-8151. In a county as large and densely populated as Bernalillo, those tools help deputies and the public identify wanted people before a routine address becomes a search scene.