Case News

Luis Miguel Torres La Rosa, 27, of Odessa, was convicted of evading motor fuel tax, a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000, and engaging in organized criminal activity, a first-degree felony punishable by five to 99 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.

An Ector County district judge sentenced the defendant to seven years’ probation and $1,830 in fines and court costs.

An investigation found the defendant unlawfully appropriated approximately 344 gallons of diesel fuel in a vehicle modified with tote tanks, hoses, pumps and batteries to illegally acquire fuel.

Vladimir Gonzalez Azahares, 28, of Houston, was convicted of engaging in a motor fuel transaction without a permit, a third-degree felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000, which was reduced to Class A misdemeanor.

A Harris County district judge sentenced the defendant to three days in the county jail.

An investigation found the defendant unlawfully appropriated approximately 60 gallons of diesel fuel using a pulsar tampering device.

Anthony Dwight Schmitz, 33, of Mineral Wells, was indicted for allegedly evading or attempting to evade motor fuel tax, a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.

An investigation revealed the suspect illegally acquired approximately 130 gallons of red-dyed diesel fuel. In Texas, non-taxable diesel is dyed red to distinguish it from taxable diesel. Red-dyed diesel is authorized almost exclusively for off-road, agricultural use by permit holders only.

The case is pending prosecution in Glasscock County.

Alexis Miguel Matos-Pena, 53, of Odessa, was indicted for alleged fraudulent use or possession of a credit card or debit card, a third-degree felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. An investigation revealed the suspect was in possession of nine cloned cards that had all been re-encoded with stolen credit/debit card information on the magnetic strip.

The case is pending prosecution in Glasscock County.

Franklin Menendez, 56, of Midland, was indicted for allegedly evading or attempting to evade motor fuel tax and transporting motor fuel without shipping documents, both second-degree felonies punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.

An investigation revealed the suspect illegally acquired approximately 526 gallons of red-dyed diesel fuel. In Texas, non-taxable diesel is dyed red to distinguish it from taxable diesel. Red-dyed diesel is authorized almost exclusively for off-road, agricultural use by permit holders only.

The case is pending prosecution in Glasscock County.

Anfioni Yorro De Los Santos, 32, of San Antonio, was indicted for allegedly failing to remit tax collected and hindering a secured creditor, both state jail felonies, and fraudulent securing of document execution, a third-degree felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

An investigation found the defendant intentionally and knowingly failed to remit more than $4,000 in tax collected on nine vehicles sold. De Los Santos also hindered a secured creditor with a current lien of over $26,000 by removing and concealing vehicles and failing to satisfy the debt. The defendant intentionally secured documents on the vehicles sold and did not disclose to the buyer or finance company that there was a legal impediment on the vehicle purchased. The impediment was due to De Los Santos not registering or paying the sales tax, preventing the vehicle from being legally driven on a highway.

The case is pending prosecution in Bexar County.

Solomon Omotoya, 29, of Joshua, was indicted for allegedly evading or attempting to evade motor fuel tax, a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.

An investigation revealed the suspect, a former police officer, unlawfully used a city fuel card during and following his employment approximately 170 different times, charging more than $9,000 in fuel for use in his personal vehicle.

The case is pending prosecution in Johnson County.

Matthew Cantrell, 34, of Cleburne, was indicted for allegedly evading or attempting to evade motor fuel tax, a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.

An investigation revealed the suspect, a former police department chief, unlawfully used a city fuel card approximately 16 different times, charging more than $500 in fuel for use in his personal vehicle.

The case is pending prosecution in Johnson County.

Jaime Santiago Rodriguez, 50, of San Antonio, was indicted for allegedly failing to remit tax by dealer in an amount between $1,500 and $20,000, a state jail felony.

An investigation found the defendant failed to transfer 14 titles and registrations of vehicles sold, thus failing to remit approximately $13,000 in motor vehicle sales tax.

The case is pending prosecution in Bexar County.

Muhsin Kenon, 73, of San Antonio, was indicted for allegedly failing to remit tax by dealer in an amount between $1,500 and $20,000, a state jail felony, and providing false information/forgery of a vehicle registration, a third-degree felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

An investigation found the defendant failed to remit the correct sales tax he collected on 51 sales by falsifying 27 applications for title, reporting a lesser sales price, and failed to complete the title transfers on 24 motor vehicle retail sales. Kenon failed to remit over $9,000 of motor vehicle sales tax collected.

The case is pending prosecution in Bexar County.

Salvador Habib Hepo, 29, of El Paso, was indicted for allegedly evading or attempting to evade motor fuel tax, a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.

An investigation revealed the suspect purchased over 200 gallons of red-dyed diesel fuel and used it in a taxable manner on the public roadway without paying the Texas Motor Fuels Tax. In Texas, non-taxable diesel is dyed red to distinguish it from taxable diesel. Red-dyed diesel is authorized almost exclusively for off-road, agricultural use by permit holders only.

The case is pending prosecution in Winkler County.

Jonathan Palmer, 31, of Hobbs, N.M., was convicted of failing to have a Texas e-cigarette permit, a Class A misdemeanor.

A Scurry County district judge sentenced the defendant to 30 days deferred adjudication, a fine of $750, court costs of $270 and $70 reimbursement.

An investigation found the defendant did not possess a Texas e-cigarette permit but had a large inventory of e-cigarette products for sale at his business.