8 people plead guilty in New Mexico drug trafficking case

The owners of a southern New Mexico pecan farm are among eight people who have pleaded guilty in a drug trafficking case.

Federal prosecutors say the owners and operators of Pettit Farms and Nursery in Anthony, N.M., and their sons were arrested in January after a five-month investigation.

They’re identified as 54-year-old Oscar Portillo Sr., his 52-year-old wife Sandra Portillo and their sons – 25-year-old Matthew Portillo and 30-year-old Oscar Portillo Jr. Prosecutors say those four plus four other defendants pleaded guilty Friday in federal court in Las Cruces.

The eight were accused of conspiring to distribute cocaine and heroin from September 2011 through January. The farm was allegedly used as a place to store and sell drugs.

The defendants will remain in federal custody pending their future sentencing hearings.