Sandoval County has no policy barring deputies from coordinating with federal immigration agents, a spokesperson said. That stance is under scrutiny after records described by nm.news showed a deputy contacted ICE during a May 22 traffic stop on Interstate 25 near Algodones.
The newspaper reported that the deputy called ICE’s Albuquerque office after a passenger presented a Mexican identification card. ICE agents later arrested that passenger and another person in the car. An ICE arrest narrative listed no criminal history for the passenger. The New Mexico Immigrant Law Center identified him as Brando Chavez Martinez; its account said he was traveling to a family wedding in Rio Rancho.
The records dispute has limited what the public can learn directly from the county. Somos Un Pueblo Unido, the law center’s advocacy arm, said Sandoval County denied its request for records related to the stop and did not answer a request to reconsider. The group and other organizations sought communications with federal immigration agencies from counties and municipalities statewide. Reported response categories do not reconcile with the stated number of jurisdictions contacted, so they do not provide a reliable complete tally.
A statewide trend, but not a count of local referrals
ICE arrest totals provide broader context, but do not show how often local officers referred people to federal agents. Source NM reported that Deportation Data Project records showed 1,853 ICE arrests in New Mexico by Oct. 15, 2025, compared with 128 by the same date in 2024. Those statewide figures do not establish how the people arrested entered ICE custody or explain the circumstances of the Sandoval County stop.
The May stop also differs from a previously reported Sandoval County operation. In June 2025, two sheriff’s deputies went to a Rio Rancho Walmart parking lot after Homeland Security Investigations requested backup for an arrest operation, the Rio Rancho Observer reported. County Manager Wayne Johnson described providing backup to agencies that request it as standard practice. That account involved requested support at a federal operation, not a deputy contacting ICE during a traffic stop.
Advocates press for statewide rules
At a Nov. 6 legislative committee presentation, Somos Un Pueblo Unido called for statewide limits on local law enforcement assistance with civil immigration enforcement, according to the Albuquerque Journal. The group argues that differing local rules leave gaps; the Sandoval County spokesperson’s statement confirms that the sheriff’s office has no policy prohibiting coordination, but does not by itself establish what written procedures governed this particular stop.
The records reported so far describe the deputy’s call and the subsequent arrests, but leave unresolved what prompted the stop and what role, if any, the deputy played after contacting ICE. The dispute over county records and the push for a uniform state policy are now part of the debate over how local policing can lead to federal immigration custody.
