EXPOSE’: The Murder and Cover-up of a Small Town Girl; Tera Chavez

PART 5 OF 5 in THE EYE ON ALBUQUERQUE EXPOSE'

PART 5: A Family Ripped Apart

On September 27, 2007, Tera Chavez reported Levi's Ford F-250 was stolen from their driveway. In addition to a police report, in the report to Allstate Insurance on October 6th, an affidavit was completed whereby Levi Chavez claimed all of the keys to the truck were accounted for. However, neighbors state they recall seeing Levi drive away in the truck in late September followed by at least one marked Albuquerque Police Department vehicle (police unit). Several hours later, Levi is seen returning to the house in his marked unit but the truck was never seen again at the Chavez home. Not again until it was recovered in Mexico around March 30th, 2011, with a changed VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) from a vehicle owned by former APD police officer and police APOA Union President, Pete Dwyer. And oddly, the truck had no damage to its steering column...

Dwyer would later be terminated by APD for his posting of inappropriate comments on Tweeter. Dwyer was also under suspicion by the APOA Union for unaccounted debts he racked up while he was president of the union.  Dwyer was pressured to resign from the Unions’ top spot.

On October 15th, the NM Insurance Fraud Bureau received a call concerning how to report a "fake stolen truck." A name similar to Tera's is left and the callback number left is the one for Tera's salon. Also in October, Levi opened up a new bank account and changed his APD direct deposit information to the new account so Tera could not see or access Levi’s income from APD.

Tera Chavez told fellow workers at the Salon, she owned, and her family if she turned up dead it was Levi who killed her.  You see Tera felt guilty about succumbing to Levi’s pressure and reporting his truck stolen. Levi reportedly told Tera and his friend that he wanted a “Caddi.” The purpose of reporting the truck stolen was to do insurance fraud which would allow Chavez to purchase his “Caddi.”  Tera was reported as telling friend and family that Levi threatened her; if she ever told, he would kill her.

Since 2005, Levi has been overextending himself with loans and credit card debt. The City of Rio Rancho sues him for breach of contract. Capital One credit card sues him for non-payment. Levi Chavez, Sr. takes out a credit card in his son's name and he defaults on that account leaving the credit card company to go after his son. They have high interest truck payments for the F-250 (which at that time has a resale value of around $20,000...so the payments are almost as large as a mortgage), they have high interest payments on the house because of his Zero-Down VA loan (in fact they owe more than it's worth), they have monthly bills and expenses, and Levi of course is living it large as he bounces from bed to bed with his various sex partners who are all cops. 

Over the weekend of October 21, 2007, Levi states that Tera called him "hundreds" of times. Yet his Verizon cell phone records show only sixteen calls on October 20, 2007, with his last call to his voicemail at 11:26PM. Then on October 21, 2007, he makes nine calls with his first one at 3:32PM to a City of Albuquerque phone number. At about 8:45PM he calls Debra Romero and talks with her for about 8 minutes. He then states he calls 911 around 9:01 stating he found his wife deceased and quickly plants the notion that her death is from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. From this call an avalanche of issues ensue, and intentionally lost in the debris is a crime scene.

VCSO deputies arrive and meet Levi in front of his house. He is quick to show them a text on his phone that states, "I'm so sad..." and shows a time of 1:06AM earlier that day. Levi keeps asserting it's her fault she did this. That he should've known. VCSO Detective Aaron Jones arrives and completes a brief interview with Levi. Levi has not given anybody information regarding Tera's parents. He has not expressed concern about Tera's children or Tera's family--especially Mr. Cordova who had given them a loan earlier to help them with their financial difficulties. Jones eventually obtains Tera's parents information and leaves the scene in the care of fellow VSCO deputies while he goes to provide notification to Tera's parents.

While Jones is away, Levi's lieutenant, former APD officer Shawn O'Connell was notified about the incident. He briefs his then commander, and current U.S. Marshall for New Mexico, Conrad Candelaria, that he is headed down to Tera's house on Ash Place.  Also en route is Sgt. James Silver of APD Internal Affairs, APD Officer Rick Ingram as a police union representative, and none other than APD Officer Ron Olivas. There are allegations that there were at least four other APD officers in addition to these four but they, as of today, have not been identified.  APD Standard Operating Procedures require that when an officer's duty is discharged an IA sergeant is sent to investigate. Consistent with that policy would be that the sergeant bring along a Field Investigator to examine the scene and discharged weapon. Given that there is City of Albuquerque property involved and harm stemming from the discharging of that property (the gun), it would be poor policy for the city not to inspect the scene or at least show that they made an effort to.

While this entourage of APD officers heads down to Los Lunas, Tera Chavez's father is notified of his daughter's death by Detective Jones. "Lock down the house" is Mr. Cordova's immediate response. Not denial that his daughter is gone, not disbelief at what he is being told in the early hours of October 21, but immediate problem solving.

But by then it's too late.

Inside the house, at least Lieutenant O'Connell, Sergeant Silver, and Officer Ingram go through the property walking past VCSO deputies and OMI personnel. Conveniently outside is Officer Olivas. Later Olivas would forcefully argue and sell that he "didn't go inside" sensing that something was wrong. Without speaking up, Olivas either let the others destroy the crime scene OR in fact helped. This would happen again almost two years later when Olivas "didn't go inside" but led former APD Officer Brad Ahrensfield believe that his son's arrest was imminent.

Inside the house, instead of throwing away a mattress that he claims was "cleared" by OMI and VCSO detectives, O'Connell cut away a patch of blood stained mattress fabric while Ingram and Silver later rummaged through furniture and personal effects. Something bloody is flushed down the toilet. Even though the weather had been very warm, VCSO detectives note that there are damp towels draped across chairs in the house.  Whatever other information the scene may have told about what happened is now gone under the footprints and manhandling of the Levi’s buddies evidence eradication team. This incident of flooding a crime scene (murder set up to look like a suicide) with cops would be repeated again but on a much grander and more macabre scale nearly three years later but this time with APD Deputy Chiefs and Captains.

With the scene walked over, Tera taken away, and Levi propagating a story that Tera was so troubled, despite getting divorce paperwork finalized, that she was so worried about finances, despite putting things in place for her own salon, and that her life revolved around him, despite her using APD Officer Nick Wheeler as a stepping stone to get out from Levi's manipulations, it seemed too late for there to be open consideration that this young woman's death was the result of a homicide.

In the years since this happened, former Officer Russell Perea was ultimately fired from APD. It turned out that HE tagged the belt tape and not Levi. But despite there being this absence of any activity where it is clear with clear and convincing (as the standard goes) evidence that Perea lied and covered for Levi Chavez, APD couldn't even fire him correctly. They terminated him not for lying to the dispatcher or his supervisor or his colleagues about being out of service and what he was doing (covering for Levi Chavez) but for not being "forthcoming." In other words, instead of relying on all that they had in hand, APD speculated about why Perea lied. Perea appealed his termination in the 2nd District Court room of Judge Bacon last month.  If Perea would have told the truth in the Levi Chavez murder trial it would have proved the City’s case against him.  Perea had to lie to save his job he was terminated from with APD and that is still on appeal.

In the summer of 2007, Perea had just lateraled over to APD via the 7th Lateral Academy class. He did not have a car yet and was assigned to work Team 5 of the Westside area command and to work with Levi Chavez. On the night of October 20, 2007, Perea drove Levi's car and Perea did all of the work while, in Perea's own words, "Levi texted all night." 

Levi would remain on the city's payroll until he was indicted in April 2011. Shortly thereafter, APD's chief would finally fire him. After endless occasions where it was clear Levi had lied to supervisors, citizens, and colleagues about his whereabouts and what he was doing, had falsified police records in the computer dispatch system, had dispatcher Desiree Gonzales falsely log him at places he wasn't at, had injured untold numbers of fellow officers....Chief Schultz waited to fire him until he had the cover of an indictment to terminate the officer. In true Schultzian fashion, Ray Schultz waited until it was not his decision to make. Keep in mind, when the murder occurred, Levi Chavez was still a probationary employee and could have been terminated for “any reason or no reason at all.”

Current CACU detective, and Levi's wife, Heather Chavez, was married to another officer in 2007. Upon returning home in mid-November not even a month after Tera's murder, that officer saw a car parked around the corner from his house. He pulled up the call history for the officer on his patrol computer and found it was a car assigned to Levi Chavez. But Chavez was logged on a call nowhere near his house. The officer pulled adjacent to his driveway, walked into his house, and inside found his wife with Levi Chavez.

One has to ask, if a person will falsify a police report, will lie about his location to a dispatcher, will seduce a fellow officer's wife in that officer's very home in the presence of their child....what won't that officer do?

EPILOGUE

Much of the details in this narrative over the last week come from public record sources. Sadly, much of this information was not presented to the jury in the trial because of weak lawyering by Valencia County Prosecutor McKay.  We at the Eye were so disgusted with the miscarriage of justice in the trial of Levi Chavez that we hope this effort over the last week tells the Cordova family that you are not alone and while many are afraid to speak out, we are not. And given the recent events over the last week, we will be even more aggressive in our exposure of misconduct and crimes by those in power. If you think we've been a pain to corrupt office holders over the last six years, stand by...

APD's new Chief, Allen Banks will take office this Friday. A few years ago when he was asked in a deposition about whether fraternization issues could negatively impair performance by APD officers given all that had happened with the Levi Chavez. Banks hesitated and then tried to evade the question by asking for clarification. When the interviewer reduced it to simple terms such as, do you think officers sleeping with fellow officer's wives would be problematic for the department, Banks answered, "I truly don't understand what you're asking me."

 

Who is the guilty one...

 

Disclaimer: The Eye On Albuquerque is not for profit and is a public opinion information blog. This story is based on facts gathered and our opinion as to what transpired based on those facts.

 

EXPOSE’: The Murder and Cover-up of a Small Town Girl; Tera Chavez

PART 4 OF 5 in THE EYE ON ALBUQUERQUE EXPOSE'

PART 4: DOMESTIC VIOLENCE/A SACRIFICE IS MADE

DUE TO THE GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION CONTAINED IN THIS ARTICLE: VIEWER DESECRETION IS ADVISED. 
 

According to the weather almanacs, the weekend of October 21, 2007 was a warm one. The daytime temperature for both days peaked at about 84F and in the evening it dropped to a cool 44F. One might have had a cooler on during the day but not likely, and they certainly would not have had one on at night.

From about 7:30pm Saturday October 20th till sometime after midnight on October 21st, Levi Chavez's whereabouts were unknown and not confirmed by any witnesses, despite being a police officer.

However, Tera was at her home on Ash Place in Los Lunas. Sometime that evening, Tera had plans to meet somebody for dinner but that dinner, for whatever reason, ended up in the trashcan. Since it was supposed to be Levi she was to meet, and a neighbor reports seeing an APD police car back out of the driveway, it was in all probability Levi Chavez. 

Tera then changed into her pajamas, climbed under her covers, and watched television flipping through channels with the remote in her right hand. In her room, various pictures of her family sat on the dresser and night stand. It’s easy to visualize a picture of one of her children’s’ new born pictures… A picture of both of them. Next to the newborn picture sat a formal picture of Levi Chavez as a new Albuquerque Police Department officer.

Ironically, after clearing a domestic violence call on Central and taking the suspect back to the substation at 7:44pm, Levi's task were straight forward:

1) Tagging a tape (time allotted for this task; five minutes).

2) Writing two-page misdemeanor domestic violence report and criminal complaint (time allotted for this task; thirty minutes).

Perea then transported the suspect to the PTC where personnel there took custody of him at about 9:35pm.

While Tera had fallen asleep with the TV on and all the houselights off, the remote in her hand and her index finger outstretched, sometime after 11pm, in front of pictures of her children the killer walked up to her with Levi Chavez’s APD issued 9mm Glock, thrust the gun into her mouth almost into her esophagus and fired a single round. The 9mm bullet penetrated her brainstem and did not exit. Death was instantaneous.

The gun was shoved into Tera’s mouth with such force and rage that it chipped one of Tera’s teeth. Levi Chavez’s defense wanted everyone to believe that Tera was some type of contortionist and flipped the gun around and up-side-down to place it in her mouth.  The gun was forced so far back into her throat that her “gag reflexes” would have rejected the object far before it could have went in so deep and discharged.

Was there a conversation between the killer and Tera?  Was this murder the act of domestic violence? Was this murder partially part of a revenge plot? What would be the motive for such a plot?  Did the murderer tell or threaten Tera with killing or hurting her children? Was Tera forced to allow the murderer “carte’ blanche” to kill her to save her children?  For most people they will do anything to protect their children from harm. Was this the case with Tera Chavez?

Tera’s nightmare was over in a split-second. Tera's dreams of being free from the terror, horror, pain and hurt that Levi Chavez had caused, was finally over. Her new reality was not the one a loving and caring mother wanted. Did Tera give her life to save her children from a monster who now has them anyway?  Was Tera’s sacrifice of death given in vein?

The killer left the scene, but like all violent encounters between two humans, there were details present. Details that were not consistent with a self-inflicted gunshot and details consistent with the actions of a killer.

-There was no “outgassing” spray of matter and/or fluid on the bed, on her hand, or on her face after the gun was fired.

-Tera's eyes remained closed.

-Her head and upper torso sloped to the right.

-Tera's velvety hair was fanned out across the bed and not crinkled up, or folded under her head, as it should've been had she slid sideways. Tera’s placement appeared staged.

-The gun's muzzle remained almost free of biological material.

-The casing remained on the bed, but not in a position consistent with where it should be if the gun were fired in an orientation proposed by Levi Chavez. Due to the gun’s action, the gun casing will send the empty bullet casing a certain direct each and every time. The position of the bullet casing is consistent with the gun being forced into Tera’s mouth by a murderer and not the up-side-down theory of Chavez’s defense.

-Nor were there lacerations on the tongue that would be present from the sudden action of the slide exploding back and chambering a new round while resting on it.

-There was a burn ring on Tera’s tongue.

-The APD issued gun lay cradled in Tera's armpit mere inches from her face with the muzzle pointing up to her head.

-Its magazine unseated.

-No powder burns exist on her hands, and her undamaged nails remained delicately manicured.

-There was no DNA located on the gun which is consistent with the weapon being cleaned off before it was placed by the murderer.

-The magazine of the gun was unseated. Dead people cannot unseat a gun magazine only a live person like the murderer could accomplish this task. This probably occurred when the weapon was being sanitized by the murderer.

-There was no cell phone on the bed or nearby.

-There were no tissues on the bed.

-There was no note on the bed.

And lastly, the children were due home on Sunday.

But the plans for the children to be safe at home with “Mom” would be changed and Levi had to get up to Debra Romero's house. She lived on Purcell NE, up near Spain NE and Juan Tabo NE. That was straight up I-25 and across Albuquerque. A 40-mile drive from Los Lunas but Levi had plenty of time to rob his children of their mother; he just needed to be sneaky about it… 

Here is another question that must be asked: what if APD’s Chief of Police, Ray Schultz, would have had a policy that prohibited adultery/infidelity?  Would this have prevented this murder or did Schultz’s failure to act or his condoning of extra marital affairs contribute to Tera’s murder?

 

In the final segment of this series we will wrap up all the loose ends, answer several unanswered questions and the picture will be clear.

EXPOSE’: The Murder and Cover-up of a Small Town Girl; Tera Chavez (PART 3)

PART 3 OF 5 in THE EYE ON ALBUQUERQUE EXPOSE'

PART 3:LEVI CHAVEZ LEAVES "HIS" ISSUED APD GUN WITH HIS ESTRANGED WIFE

While an officer with Albuquerque’s Aviation Police, Levi Chavez, chose to carry a Kimber 1911 style pistol instead of the department issued Glock 17. After going through APD’s 6th Lateral Academy class and going through three months of OJT, Levi continued to carry his APD issued Glock 17 until about the patrol officer’s 2007 bid.  Thereafter, he carried his Kimber pistol. 

Under APD operation rules and procedures, only officers who are no longer probationary, or “P 2/C” status may apply and qualify to carry an approved non-department issued gun, such as, a 1911 styled gun.

A 1911 is generally configured to fire larger .45 caliber bullets and has a grip and thumb safety. In order to carry a non-department gun not only must the officer be non-probationary, but they must satisfy a list of department requirements. They must complete and pass a 100 bullet state regulated day and night qualification shoot. They must also have a form signed off by their entire chain of command: sergeant, lieutenant, captain, deputy chief, and chief detailing the gun and qualification scores. APD range staff must inspect the gun and document details of it including trigger pull weight. And to carry a 1911, the qualified officer must also take a half-day “1911 Transition Course” offered by APD range personnel. Then and only then is the officer qualified and allowed to carry his non-department pistol on duty and loaded with specific department issued ammunition.

Levi has said under oath both in depositions and in open court that he had approval to carry his Kimber but this is refuted by an absence of any documentation at APD’s range showing he qualified with the gun, he didn’t take the course, he didn’t get the form signed off on, didn’t take the training, and of course he was still a probationary employee.

Where was the APD issued Glock?

If we are to believe Levi Chavez’s version of the events of Saturday, October 20, 2007, his loaded and chambered Glock was sitting in an unlocked armoire at his and Tera’s home in Los Lunas. Levi Chavez left his APD issued gun with a person he stated during trial; was "bugging him." We are asked to believe that he intentionally kept a loaded gun that fires by the simple action of a trigger pull in an unlocked cabinet on a shelf that is about waist high and in reach of children. And that out of sadness and desperation Tera killed herself with that APD Glock 17.

With the children out of town and in Santa Rosa, Tera prepared for a weekend to put closure with Levi. She had told friends and family they were going to have one last go around and finalize details about co-parenting their kids. But once again, Levi did not fulfill his responsibilities and failed to show up Friday night for his weekend with Tera. He spent it with a girlfriend APD Officer Deborah Romero. Then after his Saturday evening dispatch at 1909 hours to the mobile home on Central SW with Russell Perea, Levi seems to have disappeared until Sunday morning when he wakes up in bed with Deborah Romero. But in testimony that is against her own interests, Romero states she does not know when Levi Chavez climbed in bed with her early Sunday morning.

Back in Los Lunas, Tera seems to have set the house up for a guest. She had called in sick to take the day off and spend with somebody. Perhaps it was for Levi like they planned. But when Levi once again failed her Friday night, perhaps it was for somebody else. A neighbor confirms that when they were backing out of their driveway Saturday they saw a marked APD police car also backing out of Tera Chavez’s driveway with Levi at the wheel.

But either way, Saturday evening Tera changed into her sleepwear, climbed into bed, and settled down to watch television keeping the remote control close by. No glass of wine nearby, no marijuana, no cell phone, no notepad and no Kleenex tissues. Kitchen organized with no mess.

The house was clean, and it was ready for the return of her children on Sunday, October 21, 2007. But by then Tera would be deceased.

During the night, the Glock issued by APD to Levi Chavez would be thrust in Tera’s mouth, fired and then left on her lap in an effort to appear as if she had done this herself. As we have said before; women do not shot themselves in the face or head.  The pain is in the heart and yes, being vein, they want to still look pretty.

But just as Levi Chavez had made mistakes and lied about being authorized to carry a gun when he wasn’t, when he lied to other APD women about relationships, when he lied about his whereabouts on duty, when he lied about work he did/didn’t do as a field cop, when he falsified APD documents, when he lied to his supervisors, and when he’d been so careful and thorough to show people where he was and what he was doing, there would be glaring mistakes at the murder scene on Ash Lane in Los Lunas….and there would be more mistakes by others sworn to uphold the law. 

EXPOSE’: The Murder and Cover-up of a Small Town Girl; Tera Chavez (PART 2)

PART 2 OF 5 in THE EYE ON ALBUQUERQUE EXPOSE'

PART 2: ONE SHIFT

With a six week lateral, or transfer, academy and three months of on-the-job training under his belt and behind him, Levi Chavez was ready to hit the streets. As a new hire, Levi was still a probationary officer, a "P 2 C" and that meant significant restrictions and exposure. As a probationary employee he was not bound to the same protections offered to fully classified employees as he was technically still under review. This meant that if at any time his employer and department director, Ray Schultz, felt his job was insufficient; his employment could be terminated without the usual due process protections offered to regular classified employees.

This is not without significance. All new hires are told that until they complete one year of probationary employment, they have significantly fewer protections than other non-probationary employees. This gives the city a chance to make sure the employee is indeed a productive member of the workforce and, if they are not, the ability to send them on their way and fire them. New hires understand this going into the position and generally do their best to avoid generating any controversy.

Under §3-1-8 of the City of Albuquerque Ordinances asserts that "A probationary employee does not have a legitimate entitlement to continued employment and may be terminated for any or no reason." Despite knowing this and being ten months into his probationary period, Levi Chavez took a bizarre approach to his "duties" during his shift on October 20, 2007. Even to the casual observer, one will notice a distinct deviation in his activities that fateful night.

Assigned to what is now the Southwest Area Command, Levi Chavez was attached to Team 5 under the supervision of then Sergeant Gabe Mares (Mares is now an APD lieutenant). Team 5 is one of three police squads assigned to "swing" shift which at that time worked 2 PM to midnight, four nights a week, with their week starting on Wednesday and their last workday being Saturday. Without a car, or at least claiming not to have one in service, Levi teamed up with an even newer officer to APD, Russell Perea. Sgt. Mares was off that night and as our Eyes have told us, Mares is a highly devoted and active member in his church and is routinely performing church related functions frequently while on-duty. (Lt. Mares' career remains distinctive in the frequent happenstance of disturbing and high profile events. Three years later it would be under Sgt. Mares' supervision that an event eerily similar to what unfolds with Tera Chavez occurs but with prominent civil rights attorney Mary Han and a year later again it would be under Sgt. Mares' supervision that former APD Officer Matt Kindle is caught having a lunch time tryst with a prostitute while on camera.)

Paired up with Perea, Levi rode shotgun while Perea drove. Computer Aided Dispatch logs indicate Levi logged on to the system at 1311 hours with the rider "Saint Michael." He the logged "75" which is an out-of-service code officers usually log when they are in briefing which is where Levi should've been heading to. The pair's activities, assigned as E139, took on the following assignments for what would be a most fateful shift:

At 1445 Hours they went to an audible alarm, or a "52," dispatch to an address on Sundoro Place NW. They logged en-route to it at 1512 hours, 27 minutes after being dispatched to it. They then arrived at the location at 1529 hours, 44 minutes after being dispatched to it. They then cleared it as a false alarm, or "89," at 1546 hours, or 61 minutes after being dispatched to it. No report taken.

At 1546 hours, they were dispatched to a criminal sexual penetration call or a "27-2" and were sent to an address on Camino Contento NW. They logged en-route and arrived at the same time of 1546 hours. They remained on this call, until 1611 hours, or about 25 minutes. No report taken.

At 1627 hours, they were dispatched to another audible alarm call to an address on Molten Place NW. They arrived there at 1638 hours, or 11 minutes after being dispatched. They then cleared it as a false alarm at 1650 hours, or 33 minutes after being dispatched. No report taken.

At 1650 hours they were dispatched to the Wal-Mart on Coors in reference to vandalism, "38" call. They logged 4 minutes after being dispatched at 1654 hours and then cleared it at 1700 hours, or 10 minutes after being dispatched. No report taken.

At 1703 hours the pair was dispatched to an accident without injuries, a "44," to a location on Ladera NW. They arrived about 12 minutes after being dispatched at 1715 hours. They remained on this call until they cleared it with a police report at 1757 hours, or 54 minutes after being dispatched.

At 1806 they were dispatched to a disturbance call, a "39," to a location on Bright Star NW. They arrived 13 minutes after being dispatched at 1819 hours and then cleared it without a report at 1909 hours, or 63 minutes after being dispatched.

So far the shift seemed fairly steady and the pair had taken six calls over the course of just over three hours. They had little down time between calls, or at least while they stayed logged on calls, and as soon as they cleared a call their dispatched assigned them a new one almost immediately. They were efficient and they seemed to pace their work steadily and remained in control of it. Things were about to change though.

At 1909 hours, the E139 was dispatched to assault/battery call, a "27-4," at a location on Central NW. They logged en route immediately and arrived at 1918 hours, about 9 minutes after being dispatched. At 1944 hours they updated their location to the Westside Substation, or "WSSS," with 1 person in custody, 26 minutes after arriving at the location on Central. They remained at the substation until updating their location at the Prisoner Transport Center at 2117 hours, about 93 minutes after arriving at their substation. They remained at the PTC at 4th/Roma until they cleared the call with a report at 2152 hours, or 128 minutes after arriving on the scene at the location on Central.

Except there was no "they" at the PTC, only Russell Perea was seen on the PTC's video monitor and only Russell Perea's property inventory and prisoner transfer sheet was signed at about 2135 hours. Perea asserts that Levi  remained at the Westside substation where he completed the report and tagged into APD's evidence system a single tape from his duty belt mounted audio recorder. The police report consists of a face sheet without a narrative and a single half page written narrative supplemental form.

E139 then logged out on lunch, or "61," at 2152 hours at "Chiles" and remained there for 50 minutes until they logged themselves "75" at 2242 hours and "WSSS Evidence/42s." They remained logged this way until they simply logged off at 2357 hours, 3 minutes before midnight. Doing what, nobody seems to know and neither Perea nor Chavez can adequately explain what they were doing. Even more surprisingly, IA investigators from APD even failed to identify this gap in their review, the pair's activity that night.

From the moment E139 had arrived at the location on Central NW, they had remained unavailable for service, unresponsive to any supervisor, unresponsive to other dispatches for 279 minutes, or over four and a half hours. E139 was unaccountable to anybody.

Aside from the call Russell Perea and Levi Chavez took on Central at 1918 hours, there is no verifiable history of where Levi was after Russell left him to book the suspect at the PTC. For a pair that tore through six calls earlier, did all they could to avoid writing any reports, they immediately changed pace, arrested and charged a male offender for throwing small religious figurines (probably a St. Michael) at his sister. They then milked a call to the end of shift with, as expected, no accountability from any supervisors. And in that 4.5 hours, one officer drove a suspect to the PTC while Levi spent the rest of the night writing a two page report and tagging a single item into evidence. And then after logging out for dinner at Chiles they returned to the substation to do just that.

After being so efficient with their calls, they now exhibit the type of conduct a probationary employee would most fear: neglect of duty. But was this neglect or was it design?

Tera Chavez's home as mapped out via MapQuest is just over 30 miles from the Southwest Substation located at 6404 Los Volcanes Road SW and is almost a straight shot down Coors SW. There is nothing in the record by Perea or Chavez that accounts for this gap in their time. The task to complete the police report and tag evidence doesn't cover it. Booking a non-combative suspect doesn't cover it.

The Office of the Medical Investigator put Tera's time of death between 2200 hours on 10/20 to 0400 hours on 10/21. Did Tera Chavez die during the time that Levi Chavez was unaccountable? Is it a coincidence that this is exactly the time that Levi is unaccounted for? Yet Levi would have us believe she sent him a text the day of 10/21 indicating she was afraid she was going to hurt herself...? If Tera Chavez died on 10/20; who sent that text message to Levi Chavez?

EXPOSE’: The Murder and Cover-up of a Small Town Girl; Tera Chavez

PART 1 OF 5 in THE EYE ON ALBUQUERQUE EXPOSE’

PART 1: The Dirty Play Begins

Over the weekend of October 21st 2007, a young woman in Los Lunas died a brutal death. Around 9pm on Sunday October 21, former APD Officer Levi Chavez called 911 to report that he found Tera Chavez, the woman Levi Chavez was married to, deceased from a gunshot wound.

However, as we have been reporting here at the Eye since this incident occurred, nothing involving any of the players in this case is clear and straight forward. Over the next five days we are going to do our best to provide an analysis that many of our Eyes have put together concerning this horrible tragedy. We are going to do it in a level of depth that heretofore has not been presented to the public. Beginning today we are going to analyze Levi Chavez's hiring, then Friday we will analyze his work history, the events of October 20, 2007, his statements and representations, the crime scene, and then finally what came out in court and what we expect in the pending civil lawsuit.

Why now? Because in many ways, this incident and this case unfolded from October 21, 2007 to July 16, 2013 exemplifies the worst of New Mexico politics, law enforcement, and crime. This case helped remove Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez, and in ways that defy belief, has been aggravated by Albuquerque's current Mayor Richard Berry. Whether or not Berry shares in the downfall of Martin Chavez remains to be seen until the election in October.  The common denominator in both mayoral administrations is APD's current Chief Raymond Schultz. It was Schultz who hired Levi Chavez, it was Schultz who retained Levi Chavez, and it was Schultz who complicated and tainted the murder investigation of Tera Chavez.

This saga begins with the hiring of Levi M. Chavez II by the Albuquerque Police Department.

Levi Chavez started working for APD in January 2007.  Levi Chavez gained his certification after having the costs fronted by the City of Rio Rancho. You see, in 2005, Levi Chavez was hired by Rio Rancho's Department of Public Safety and they covered the cost of sending him to the State of New Mexico's Department of Public Safety peace officer academy.  However, no sooner had he completed his training and gained his state certification as a peace officer, Levi Chavez did what would be a recurring pattern: he abandoned his commitments and responsibilities. Instead of honoring the city and police department that had provided him income and benefits while paying for his certification by fulfilling his contract, Levi Chavez breached his employment agreement with Rio Rancho and pursued employment with the City of Albuquerque's Aviation Police Department. Not being afraid to steal certified candidates from other departments, ABQ Aviation Police Chief Marshall Katz readily brought Levi Chavez on to his department.

However, Rio Rancho did not sit by and simply let a breach of contract occur by a person they had invested so much time and money in. At the very least they wanted to be paid back. Despite sending numerous demand-letters admonishing Levi Chavez to reimburse the city (that is the public), Levi Chavez simply ignored them. Finally, on November 7, 2005 Rio Rancho filed a lawsuit against Levi Chavez for breach of contract. This case, D-1329-CV-200501253 landed in the courtroom of Sandoval County District Court Judge....George Eichwald.

In what would be one of the fastest district court level civil cases to be settled, on December 1, 2005 LEVI Chavez agreed to a stipulated judgment against him, whereby, he agreed to pay Rio Rancho $14,400 in costs and interest. What's odd about this is that a settlement could have been reached where a judgment was not required. A judgment has a particular sting on one's credit history, and to no surprise, this case remains open with no satisfaction of the judgment having been filed by Rio Rancho. In other words, if Levi Chavez came to you for a loan, upon reviewing his credit history it would show that he was sued by the city of Rio Rancho, agreed to pay at least $14,400 and has not fulfilled that amount. Does Levi Chavez sound like a safe and secure borrower or a high risk borrower?

Levi Chavez's time at Katz's department would prove to be short-lived. In 2006, APD promoted and offered a six week lateral academy. Enticed by even higher pay, Levi Chavez completed an online interest card and applied to be a lateral officer to APD. "Lateral" is just another way of transferring between departments. Because he was already state certified as a police officer, Levi Chavez would not have to go through the basic academy. APD offered a six week academy for such candidates to help familiarize them with APD operations. However, all candidates, whether laterals or new hires, had to pass the same qualifications. Upon being accepted, Levi Chavez abandoned his commitments to Katz and started the process with the department's big sister: APD.

Under APD's hiring process and standards, Step #4 requires each candidate to undergo an intensive background investigation (go to apdonline.com). Such BI includes providing a credit report to the recruiter and an investigation into the candidate's credit history.  This is a significant component to assessing any candidate's honesty and trustworthiness. What good is a police candidate if they have a poor credit history and references? Do they follow rules and do they honor obligations once they agree to take on responsibilities? If the answer is no, then there is a strong likelihood that they will abuse their authority as a police officer. As we all know, lying is one thing a police officer is not permitted to do. And the reason is simple:

Police officers are granted significant credibility in court because they are supposed to not only be law enforcers, but law abiders.

However, Levi Chavez somehow managed to surpass this stringent requirement. Not only had he breached a contract with another police department, he had failed to honor financial commitments to that department. Then when given notice about those responsibilities, he ignored them. Finally when confronted with the reality of being sued, Levi Chavez agreed to a judgment amount.

This should have been an instant bar to candidacy as an APD officer. Our Eyes confirm that even with this and signs of deception in his polygraph and concerns about his accuracy in his application, Levi Chavez was hired at the recommendation of then DCOP Mike Castro and confirmed by current APD Chief Ray Schultz.  This decision was made purposefully and willfully over the aggressive objections of APD Academy personnel.

Upon being hired, completing his lateral academy and finishing twelve weeks of in the field training, Levi Chavez would find himself in an environment ripe for exploitation. Not only were supervisors rarely seen allowing for endless opportunities of abuse, but there were so many "customs" that led to philandering it seemed too good to be true. The opportunities for making the most (that is abusing) of one's authority, self-promotion, power, and sex seemed limitless....

Levi Chavez willing to "Roll Dirty"

As Levi Chavez left the court house the other day after NOT being convicted of 1st Degree Murder, we got to see a true glimpse of the accused' real personality. When asked about a still remaining wrongful death suit, "they can bring it on" Chavez boasted confidently (Can anyone say, "OJ"). Gone was the doughy eyed soft spoken weepy philanderer. Out came the aggressive cocky Levi that our Eyes have been hollering about for years.

One has to wonder what the fallout will be now that this case is over. Given that there are many high profile cases involving the actions of officers under the direction of APD's Chief Schultz.  Are they going to remain buried in the back pages of the local paper and after the first cut of ads on television? We doubt it.

With the Levi Chavez "affair" over, DOJ's scrutiny of APD is sure to come to the surface. Additionally APD's woes have only begun (especially if their officers can keep from shooting each other). There are several shootings that remain too cleared and we are being told that one involving a K9 officer has been referred out of DA Brandenburg's office. Our Eyes also tell us the investigation of the suspicious death of a prominent civil rights attorney, Mary Han, continues to unfold and that actions of cover-up go all the way to Santa Fe, in the case, and APD continues its attempts to intimidate others involved in the case. Our Eyes also tell us the current SRO Officer, and former APD Captain, Rob DeBuck, is operating behind the scenes in the Dinelli camp...angling for Chief of APD perhaps Rob?

There are many weeks left in this summer and to be sure, the Levi Chavez affair has taken much of the direct exposure off of Schultz and Berry. But now that the criminal portion is over, our Eyes tell us it is only going to get hotter for those in power in Albuquerque....

The Eye On Albuquerque will be running an Expose' with timelines and information that many do not know about.

Is it Internal Affair or Affairs?

As week two wraps up in the Levi Chavez murder trial, yet more sordid details of APD's internal affairs culture are confirmed. Defense Attorney David Serna and Prosecutor Brian McKay compelled APD Officer Nick Wheeler to admit and describe on the stand the intimate elements of his affair with former APD Officer Levi Chavez's wife and reported homicide victim Tera Chavez.
 

We're not going to dwell on Wheeler's actions as sad as they are. But what startles us most, this is not the first instance where an APD officer has had an affair with another officer's wife. We at the Eye have had dozens of reports where Officer X is sleeping with the spouse of Officer Y. And sometimes that spouse is themselves an officer.
 

And in some cases over the last few years, parties involved have tragically taken or attempted to take their own lives.

Think about that for a minute. In a culture where officers must trust each other with their lives, they don't dare risk leaving their wives or husbands alone with fellow officers.
 

And even worse, in the dozen or so cases of entanglements such as these, there has been a total absence of action taken either by the department or by almost all other officers.  Sometimes the failure to act is as bad as an actual act. An omission can be as damaging as a commission.
 

What does this say about APD? When a fellow officer is sleeping with another officer's spouse not only does Schultz NOT deal with this but officers don't step up and deal with it either. If the officers won't police themselves in such intimate personal matters such as this, it's even more doubtful they'll police themselves in other matters such as evidence, use of force, and misconduct.
 

The Eye also recently received a report which states not only was Schultz briefed on the need to put a lid on this activity but what the consequences of failing to act could likely be. From what we've read, this report from four years ago accurately predicted where APD was headed.
 

Our Eyes watching the Chavez murder trial tell us, more omissions and failures to act are forthcoming. And we are told they are much worse. With this Summer defined by this trial, and the disgusting internal affairs of APD playing out across the world, remember that the city's current Mayor HAD an opportunity to fix this mess.
 

But like so many others in APD, and just like APD's Chief Ray Schultz, RJ Berry failed to act resulting in consequences measured in blood, money, and tears.

Justice Delayed

Tera Chavez died in October of 2007. By May of 2008, the Valencia County Coroner had determined that Chavez's death was not a suicide. Last week the Tera Chavez estate had their first hearing in their wrongful death suit against Officer and Pound Cage-mucker Levi Chavez.

The wrongful death suit makes a number of allegations against Chavez chief among them that he's responsible for the death of his wife. The Albuquerque Police Department is also named in the suit for condoning extra marital affairs and for allowing officers to wreck a crime scene.

Office fraternization is never a good idea and managers in both the public and private sectors struggle to minimize it in the workplace. We'll defer to the judge when it comes to APD's responsibility, but affairs, adultery, and accusations of more serious sexual misconduct are yet another one of the problems that The 5th Floor refuses to deal with or acknowledge.

The most concerning aspect of this whole affair as far as APD's involvement is concerned is the inability of trained APD officers to recognize a potential crime scene and know not to screw it up. Valencia County isn't known for its investigative prowess and we all know that the DA down there has more than a issues, but Chief Schultz and everyone at APD would be screaming if 9 officers from another agency trampled around in a potential crime scene in their jurisdiction. Was the activity simply stupid or perhaps intentional?

For now, the Chavez estate is exercising the only option that it has in their quest to finally see justice done. So far, the criminal system has failed them starting with the first officers on the scene - officers who should have never been there.

Update: Tera Chavez

From time to time we receive emails from folks who want to know what ever happened in the Tera Chavez case. If you'll remember, Tera Chavez was the wife of APD Officer Levi Chavez whose October 2007 death was originally called a suicide. The cause of death was later changed to "undetermined" and suicide was ruled out (read it here and here).

Unfortunately (except perhaps for Levi Chavez), there has been little movement on the law enforcement front. That's more than likely due to the arrival of several APD officers at the scene shortly after Ms. Chavez' death - even before the Los Lunas Police showed up. Of course, the officers didn't have any business entering a potential crime scene in another jurisdiction but that didn't stop them from mucking up the criminal case from the get go.

As usual in these suspicious death cases, a civil suit is filed and often runs parallel to the criminal case. Sometimes due to screw-ups or incompetence, the civil case is the only way for families to seek justice (think O.J.).

The Tera Chavez Estate filed suite back in Augusts of 2008 (read it here). The suit names Levi Chavez II, Chief Ray Schultz, Lt. Shawn O'Connell, Sgt. Ron Olivas, Sgt. James Silver, and "APD Officers John Does 4-6." (Read the original filing here.)

In a wrongful death suit, the plaintiff's attorney hires their own investigator to dig up evidence to support their case. It looks as if their investigation is starting to bear fruit for attorney Brad Hall and his clients.

According to our Eyes, a forensic analysis of Officer Chavez' city issued and owned computer - the one used in his vehicle - revealed that Chavez had been doing a little research on how to commit murder and make it look like a suicide. In addition, Chavez seemed to be stocking up on cold medicine by purchasing 6 bottles right before Tera's death. Toxicology found that Tera Chavez had three times the recommended amount of cold medicine in her bloodstream.

Is it possible that Tera Chavez had a thirst for cold medicine and that Levi just happened to be doing research about making a murder look like suicide? Sure. But anyone can see that it doesn't look real good to be running around with other women, taking out insurance policies, keeping marijuana on the premises, buying copious amounts of cough medicine, and researching how to make a murder look like suicide.

Remember under our system of law unless you've received a scam-era citation, you're innocent until proven guilty. But in civil cases, the burden of proof is "preponderance of the evidence" not "reasonable doubt" - a considerably lower standard.

What has really gotten us annoyed at this point is that our best information is that Levi Chavez is still on paid administrative leave. We are all paying for Chavez to do, well... nothing. And he's been doing nothing since November 19th, 2007.

The standards for termination at APD are even more difficult to defend than the standard in a civil trial.

The allegations against Chavez don't just include well... murder - they include financial difficulties and insurance fraud. At the time of his wife's untimely demise, Chavez was a probationary officer which means he can be terminated for just about anything. We've said it before, but wouldn't the circumstance of Tera Chavez' death qualify as a reason to send Chavez packing?

- EyeOnAlbuquerque.com

How long are the taxpayers of Albuquerque going to have to continue to pay an officer not to be on the force when there seems to be plenty of reason to take him off the payroll regardless of his guilt or innocence in his wife's death?

Incompetence and Excuses

We're finally getting some reaction from the 5th Floor with regard to nine of their officers allegedly trampling a crime scene.

Albuquerque Police Chief Ray Schultz says all but one of the officers who showed up at the home of a fellow officer after his wife was shot to death in the couple's Valencia County home were there on their own time.

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Uh... Excuse us but aren't these trained and sworn officers? It really doesn't matter whether they were on duty, of duty, or on vacation for that matter. Anyone who's watched more than one episode of Law and Order knows that you don't go trampling around a room containing a dead body unless your intent is to contaminate the crime scene.

We don't have a problem with officers going down there on their own time - we have a problem with the stunning lack of professionalism shown by the nine APD officers who allegedly entered an active crime scene. At the very least these officers made the jobs of OMI and the Valencia County Sheriff's Department much more difficult. At worst, they could have made prosecuting a murderer next to impossible.

"At the start of this, we truly believed it was a suicide," said Aaron Jones, the lead investigator for Valencia County. "Once we started looking at some things we didn't have knowledge of until days later, we realized it might not be a suicide. By then, the damage had been done to the investigation. We have learned a lot from this investigation."

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

We don't know what's more frightening, nine officers stupidly trashing a crime scene or the revelation that VCSO's lead detective learned that having nine people trampling a crime scene is a bad idea.

No one may ever truly know what happened to Tera Chavez, particularly since our Eyes tell us that the VCSO isn't exactly known for its investigative prowess. When you add nine APD officers who should have known better to the mix what you're left with is incompetence and a few lame excuses.

Eye Told You: Suspicious

Valencia County officials finally got around to telling you what we told you back in November (read it here). The Journal is reporting that suicide has been ruled out as the cause of death of Tera Chavez, wife of suspended APD officer Levi Chavez (Subscription).

Officials told the Journal that Officer Chavez has officially become an unofficial suspect - in other words "person of interest." We don't really have any new information and since this is an ongoing investigation, we wouldn't publish it even if we had it. However, we told you that there was more to this story than was initially reported. Right now, officials are treating the case as a homicide.