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Failed candidate found guilty in shooting plot against New Mexico Democrats

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A failed Republican candidate was found guilty Wednesday of hiring people 
to shoot at the homes of local Democratic leaders after he lost an 
election for the New Mexico House of Representatives, according to his 
attorney.

Solomon Peña, 41, was charged with multiple felonies, including three 
counts of solicitation to commit a crime of violence, three counts of 
using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence 
and discharging the firearm, being a felon in possession of a firearm and 
conspiracy, according to a federal superseding indictment filed against 
him in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque.

A jury found him guilty on all counts Wednesday evening, according to his 
lead attorney, Nicholas T. Hart.

Peña faces life in prison. A sentencing date has not been set.

Federal prosecutors said that Peña, “refusing to accept his electoral 
defeat,” organized a “shooting spree that targeted the homes of four 
elected officials and their families” from Dec. 4, 2022, to Jan. 3, 2023, 
according to court records.

In a text message after the jury's verdict, Hart called it "a travesty."

"The evidence showed that Mr. Pena had nothing to do with these shootings. 
Solomon Pena was prosecuted because of his political beliefs, and because 
he advocated that the 2020 election was stolen and rigged,” Hart said.

He added: “Meanwhile, the men who actually shot at and terrorized these 
politicians are going to walk free. That is not how our system is supposed 
to work.”

Prosecutors did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the 
verdict.

The shootings, one of which involved a machine gun, were carried out by 
Peña and co-defendants Demetrio Trujillo, 43, and his son, Jose Trujillo, 
24, according to federal prosecutors.

Both men pleaded guilty last year to charges of conspiracy, interference 
with federally protected activities, using and carrying a firearm during a 
crime of violence and other counts, prosecutors said.

They have not been sentenced but face up to life in prison.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/failed-candidate-solomon-pena-
shooting-plot-new-mexico-guilty-rcna196796

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Failed candidate found guilty in shooting plot against New Mexico Democrats Jason Black <jason.black@gazette.com> - 2025-03-20 11:40 +0100

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