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Ben Martinez, an enrolled member of Taos Pueblo, pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual abuse of children Wednesday (Jan. 29) in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico.
Martinez, 76, admitted to exploiting his role as a religious leader in Taos Pueblo’s Kiva to sexually assault minors during traditional ceremonies and at his home between 2001 to 2010, according to court documents.
Martinez’ plea agreement reports he sexually abused at least three children between the ages of 5 to 13 years old, along with other currently known victims. In the agreement's admission of facts statement, he notes the following, in part:
“I served as a religious leader in Taos Pueblo’s Kiva. As a leader, I presided over traditional ceremonies involving minor children and held a position in the community allowing for children to come to my home on Taos Pueblo unattended by their caregivers … All my actions described in this statement occurred in the exterior boundaries of the Taos Pueblo, in Indian Country, and in Taos County in the District of New Mexico.”
Martinez was first charged by federal indictment in May 2024 and is currently in custody. He faces 15 to 40 years imprisonment at sentencing, the date of which was pending as of press time.
Provided Martinez follows the obligations of the plea agreement, the U.S. government agrees to move to dismiss the eight-count indictment, refrain from bringing forward additional charges and not indict him for alleged offenses beyond the three children mentioned — though Martinez had to agree to acknowledge them as victims of sexual offenses he committed and not object if they address him at sentencing.
“The United States will not indict the defendant for alleged offenses against additional individuals; specifically, four (4) additional individuals have alleged offenses by the defendant,” the plea agreement states.
The Santa Fe Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with the help of the Taos Pueblo Department of Public Safety. Assistant United States Attorney Brittany DuChaussee is prosecuting the case as part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to address child sexual exploitation and abuse.
The FBI will continue to investigate Martinez’s involvement in crimes against other victims.
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