Socorro track coach, special ed teacher facing drug charges.

Ronald Comanche, 42, arrested last week on suspicion of soliciting a Socorro High School student to buy drugs, has been put on paid administrative leave by the school district, El Defensor Chieftain of Socorro reports on its Web site.

Comanche, a special education teacher at the high school and a boys' track coach, was released on a $20,000 cash or surety bond last Wednesday, after being arrested late Tuesday at his Socorro home by a drug task force made up of Socorro city police, county sheriff's deputies and New Mexico State Police, El Defensor Chieftain reported.

He is facing one count each of solictation, conspiracy to traffic crack cocaine and attempted trafficking of crack cocaine, the paper reported.

State Police Capt. Jesus F. Orozco told the paper that Comanche was arrested because he is suspected of trying to make drug purchases using an 18-year-old high school senior, who is on the varsity football team.

Orozco said the boy's parents contacted State Police about their son's possible drug activity, and according to a criminal complaint the parents told State Police in February that their son admitted he used money stolen from his mother's purse to buy drugs and that he also bought drugs for Comanche, El Defensor Chieftain reported.

The criminal complaint also alleged that the boy told police he had bought gotten marijuana and crack cocaine for Comanche "several times," and that he agreed to make recorded calls to Comanche back in February, the paper reported.

Orozco told the paper he didn't know whether charges would be filed against the student, but called him a "cooperative source" for police.

In addition to coaching track and his teaching duties, Comanche also is an assistant football coach.

Orozco told the Defensor Chieftain that to his knowledge, no other coaches or students are being investigated in connection with this case but that the investigation is continuing.

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