NM State Police arrests 24 people in drug operation in southeast New Mexico

About 90 pounds of marijuana and $50,000 in cash were confiscated from a Texas man’s pickup during a recent drug operation that resulted in more than 20 arrests in southeastern New Mexico.

During “Operation Alien Town Takedown,” which took place Jan. 15-19, 24 people were arrested in Chaves County.

Among them, Don Wester, 53, of Itasca, Texas, was charged with distribution of marijuana, trafficking a controlled substance, possession of a stolen firearm and resisting, evading and obstructing a peace officer, New Mexico State Police spokesman Lt. Phil Vargas said.

Vargas added that Roswell residents, 56-year-old John Campbell and 72-year-old Everett Brakeman, were also arrested during the operation.

Wester, Campbell and Brakeman were taken to the Chaves County Detention Center last week, but have since been released on bond, Detention Center Records Clerk Mari Ortega said.

State Police only released information about three of the 24 people arrested.

“Typically, in a large scale operation where a large number of individuals are arrested, we only highlight a few arrested subjects,” Vargas said.

On Jan. 17, officers were dispatched to a call of a suspicious vehicle on U.S. 380 and Whitemill Road just east of Roswell city limits, Vargas said.

An anonymous caller to State Police saw a black plastic bag containing air-sealed bags with what was thought to be marijuana falling out of a white pickup with Texas plates, according to a criminal complaint filed at Chaves County Magistrate Court.

Officers pulled over the pickup and tried multiple times to get the driver — later identified as Wester — to come out. He did so only after an officer threatened to break a window with a baton, the complaint states.

After the truck was towed, State Police found 90.6 pounds of marijuana, 34.8 grams of cocaine, $51,615 in cash and a stolen .38-caliber revolver inside, Vargas said.

On Jan. 18, Campbell and Brakeman, who were involved in the operation, Vargas said, were arrested on warrants.

Brakeman, is currently awaiting his preliminary examination on a trafficking charge, according to court records.

Along with the marijuana, cash and revolver found in Wester’s truck, State Police confiscated 9.6 grams of meth, 15 fentanyl pills and four firearms during the operation, Vargas said.

State Police Chief Troy Weisler said the Crime Suppression Bureau, Investigations Bureau and District 3 Uniform Bureau contributed to the operation.

“Their unwavering determination stands as a testament to the State Police’s commitment to rid our communities of criminal influence,” he said.