Las Cruces felon sentenced to 10 years for pointing gun at ex girlfriend

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico (KVIA) -- 43-year-old Jesus Coronado will spend the next 10 years in prison. A federal jury previously convicted Coronado of being a felon in possession of a firearm, his second such federal conviction.

Court documents state that Coronado brandished a gun at his former girlfriend in a smoke shop parking lot on December 11, 2021. Investigators found surveillance video that showed the confrontation and obtained a warrant for Coronado's arrest.

"After several days of surveillance, officers observed a male matching Coronado's description in the driveway of the residence on December 13, 2021," a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico said. "When commanded to stop, Coronado fled."

Officers later found Coronado hiding between a tree and a small cinder block wall near his house.

Investigators recovered the gun used in the confrontation on the roof of Coronado's house and sent it away for DNA testing. The results matched Coronado who, as a previously convicted felon, was prohibited from owning a gun.

Officials charged Coronado in February 2022, indicted him in June 2023, and a jury convicted him in February 2024.