Rio Rancho man detained, charged in FLOCK license plate reader case

A Rio Rancho resident has been detained and charged in a case that links damaged FLOCK license plate readers, a protest near NM 528 and US 550, and a SWAT call that briefly raised fears of an explosive device. For Sandoval County taxpayers and police, the case now sits at the intersection of public safety, property damage and a growing fight over how much vehicle surveillance local agencies should use.

Jevon Martinez, 44, was detained during a SWAT incident near Country Club Road and Broadmoor Boulevard and booked on a misdemeanor warrant along with vehicle-related charges tied to the FLOCK cameras, including invalid license plate, improper license and financial responsibility issues. Police said the case began to come together on May 23, when officers patrolling near NM 528 and US 550 encountered a protest of roughly 40 to 50 people.

At that protest, officers noticed flags with a design similar to ones seen at other FLOCK-related incidents. A vehicle there reportedly displayed a fictitious plate reading DIPLOMAT, which did not return to an owner in police databases. Police later identified Martinez as the driver after stopping him for the plate issue. They said he handed over an International Driving Permit that came back with a Rio Rancho Municipal Court warrant, then refused to exit the vehicle and had to be escorted out.

The investigation escalated on May 27 when police served a search warrant at a home in the 3200 block of Renaissance Drive. Officers deployed a drone into the home and initially believed they had found a homemade explosive device. The object turned out to be a jet engine, not an explosive, but the call brought the Albuquerque bomb squad into the picture and underscored how quickly the case moved beyond vandalism into a broader public-safety response.

Property crimes investigators later recovered location data for stolen FLOCK cameras that placed them in the area of Martinez’s residence, deepening the link between the damaged equipment and the arrest. Martinez had also previously been arrested for aggravated battery against a household member, adding another layer to a case already drawing attention because it touched protest activity, police technology and an ongoing criminal investigation.

The controversy comes as New Mexico lawmakers have been moving to place statewide guardrails on automatic license plate readers. Senate Bill 40, the Driver Privacy and Safety Act, passed the House on Feb. 17 by a 42-22 vote and was described by supporters as the state’s first statewide regulations for ALPR data. The bill would limit how outside agencies can use that data and bar its use for legal health care, immigration enforcement or constitutionally protected activity.

That debate has only sharpened in New Mexico, where the ACLU of New Mexico says ALPRs capture time, date and GPS location with every read, while police leaders argue the cameras remain valuable in serious cases. In Rio Rancho, the Martinez case is likely to intensify both sides of that argument.