ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – At this point, four of seven APD officers at the center of a federal investigation into the department’s DWI unit have resigned. 

That includes Lt. Justin Hunt, and officers Honorio Alba Jr., Harvey Johnson Jr., and Nelson Ortiz. 

This investigation centers around an alleged scheme where these officers may have been teaming up with a local attorney to not show up in court, leading to DWI cases getting dismissed.

It’s also forced the Bernalillo County district attorney to dismiss more than 200 active DWI cases.

An APD spokesperson says the three resigned within the past several weeks before Internal Affairs could interview them about an alleged scheme involving the department’s DWI unit. 

But APD Chief Harold Medina says even though these officers have stepped down, it doesn’t mean the investigation is over.

“We do want to give the public more information and reassure them that there is still accountability even though that you resign your position, and that we fully intend to ensure that everybody is held accountable. I said it from the very beginning of this investigation, no rock will be left unturned,” said Medina. 

Once APD’s internal investigation is complete, Medina says the department will send its findings to the New Mexico Law Enforcement Certification Board.

Based on that investigation, the board can suspend or revoke the officers’ law enforcement certification. That would ultimately bar them from working for any other law enforcement agency in our state. 

But APD isn’t the only one investigating these officers. The FBI is also investigating the APD’s DWI unit, and that doesn’t stop just because the officers resigned. If the feds end up charging any of the officers, they would face potential criminal consequences. 

“We’ve gotten to the point it’s not shocking to me that the individuals are choosing to resign, or we’ll keep working at this, and we’ll keep moving forward,” said Medina.