U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi revealed disturbing details in a Friday appearance on Fox News, describing the arrest of former New Mexico Judge Jose “Joel” Cano and linking the case to a violent international gang.
Bondi stated that one of the three illegal immigrants allegedly protected by Cano had photos of a decapitated victim stored on his phone.
The case centers around Cano’s reported involvement with members of the Tren de Aragua, a notorious criminal organization originating from Venezuela.
Bondi argued that the evidence, including gang-related tattoos, incriminating text messages, and disturbing images, points directly to one of the individuals as a confirmed member of the gang.
Cano, who resigned after his Las Cruces home was raided earlier this year, now faces federal charges.
Democrats, however, have pushed back against the arrest, claiming it represents an abuse of executive power. Bondi dismissed those claims during her appearance on Fox, saying the evidence speaks for itself.
Bondi confirmed that Judge Cano, now officially removed from the bench, faces charges of obstruction.
“Judge Cano, soon to be former Judge Cano — his charges were just unsealed. He is charged with obstruction. … He admitted post-Miranda. He took one of the TDA members’ cell phones himself — took it, beat it with a hammer, destroyed it, then walked the pieces to a city dumpster to dispose of it to protect him,” Bondi told Fox News.
She added that Cano’s wife has also been charged with tampering with evidence. Bondi described the disturbing contents found on the alleged gang member’s phone: “He had tattoos all over him. He also had on his cell phone pictures of two decapitated victims — two victims, decapitated! … Gruesome photos!”
Bondi also accused the couple of giving assault-style rifles with suppressors, which were reportedly owned by their daughter, to the alleged gang-affiliated individuals. According to an affidavit, the firearms were taken to a shooting range with the illegal immigrants in question.
“This is the last person that we want in our country, nor will we ever tolerate a judge or anyone else harboring them!” Bondi said.
Cano, for his part, has maintained that he had no prior knowledge of the men’s gang connections. “Let me be as crystal clear as possible,” he wrote in a statement to KOAT-TV. “The very first time I ever heard that the boys could possibly have any association with Tren de Aragua was when I was informed of that by [the] agents on the day of the raid.”
He said that he believed they were in the United States legally, pointing to documents suggesting they were not in deportation proceedings and that their asylum claims were active.
He also denied providing them firearms or engaging in target practice, saying he and his wife were only bystanders at the range.
The New Mexico Supreme Court has permanently barred Cano from holding judicial office. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) has charged him with tampering with evidence.
According to HSI, Nancy Cano is also facing conspiracy charges related to evidence tampering as part of an ongoing federal probe.
HSI special agent Jason T. Stevens explained that authorities remain cautious about releasing further details.
“At this stage of the investigation, there are concerns about evidence tampering and destruction,” Stevens said. “However, to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation and any future proceedings, we are unable to release specific details.”
A separate controversy unfolded the following day in Wisconsin, where Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan was arrested for allegedly aiding a migrant in evading Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, ICE agents arrived at Dugan’s courthouse on April 18 to apprehend a migrant defendant scheduled to appear before her.
The report says Dugan advised the man and his attorney to use a different hallway to avoid detection by immigration officers.
“They’re deranged is all I can think of … I think some of these judges think they are beyond and above the law and they are not,” Bondi remarked.
“And we’re sending a very strong message today if you are harboring a fugitive, we don’t care who you are. If you are helping hide one, if you are giving a TdA member guns, anyone who is illegally in this country, we will come after you and prosecute you. We will find you,” she warned.
“No one is above the law in this country. And if you are destroying evidence, if you are obstructing justice — when you have victims sitting in a courtroom of domestic violence and you’re escorting a criminal defendant out a back door — it will not be tolerated and it is a crime in the United States of America,” she continued. “Doesn’t matter who you are, you’re going to be prosecuted.”
In the aftermath, Democrats in Wisconsin came to Judge Dugan’s defense.
Sen. Tammy Baldwin released a statement accusing the Trump administration of overstepping legal bounds.
“The President’s administration arresting a sitting judge is a gravely serious and drastic move, and it threatens to breach those very separations of power,” Baldwin warned.
She said the move “fits into the deeply concerning pattern of this President’s lawless behavior and undermining courts and Congress’s checks on his power.”
Governor Tony Evers issued a similar statement, accusing the administration of using “dangerous rhetoric to attack and attempt to undermine our judiciary at every level.”
