ALBUQUERQUE — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)), published as received.

ALBUQUERQUE – Dineh Benally pleaded guilty in federal court to leading a vast illegal marijuana cultivation and distribution ring that spanned several years, exploited workers, and polluted the San Juan River on tribal lands.

Benally pleaded guilty to 15 counts, including:

  • Two drug trafficking conspiracy charges for orchestrating the illegal operations.
  • Four charges of manufacturing and possessing with intent to distribute over 1,000 kilograms of marijuana and more than 1,000 marijuana plants.
  • Two charges of maintaining a drug-involved premises.
  • Two charges of illegally discharging pollutants into the San Juan River.
  • Possessing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking.
  • Unlawfully employing illegal aliens.
  • Conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens.
  • Smuggling undeclared pesticides into the United States.
  • Concealment of Records in a Federal Investigation.

According to court documents, from approximately January 2018 to November 2020, Benally, 48, and his co-conspirators established over 30 farms, covering more than 400 acres, on land obtained from Navajo Nation members. To fund this illegal enterprise, Benally and a co-conspirator traveled to California and created front companies to solicit Chinese investors. These investors were charged cash fees ranging from $20,000 to $50,000 for counterfeit cannabis cultivation licenses. They were also deceived into believing they were growing legal hemp, not marijuana, and were required to pay the co-conspirators a percentage of the harvest.

The operation involved the construction of over 1,100 greenhouses and employed both local Navajo workers and Chinese foreign laborers, some of whom were undocumented immigrants, to grow, cultivate, and transport marijuana out of New Mexico.

Furthermore, Benally constructed an illegal sandbag dam on the San Juan River and filled in a river channel to irrigate the crops by dumping sand, rocks, and agricultural waste, which constituted an unpermitted discharge of pollutants into a federally protected waterway, violating the Clean Water Act.

The criminal enterprise was dismantled following law enforcement seizures in November 2020, which confiscated approximately 260,000 marijuana plants and 60,000 pounds of processed marijuana.

The second period, from approximately January 1, 2022, to January 23, 2025, involved an illegal marijuana grow operation near Estancia, New Mexico. Benally initially received a state license to grow marijuana near Estancia. However, state inspectors identified uncontrolled pest infestations, a lack of quality controls, and other violations that led to his license being revoked on December 23, 2023, and a $1 million fine. Benally continued the operation in defiance of the cease-and-desist order, going so far as to tamper with a utility meter to steal electricity.

On January 23, 2025, a joint federal and state law enforcement operation raided two additional marijuana farms linked to Benally near Estancia. The raid, which also involved a search of his residence, uncovered approximately 8,500 pounds of marijuana, $35,000 in cash, illegal pesticides, methamphetamine, firearms, and a bulletproof vest.

“This case shows the human and environmental costs when the law is ignored, and it underscores our office’s commitment to protecting New Mexico’s communities and natural resources alongside out federal, state, Tribal and local partners.,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison. “Exploiting workers, desecrating land and poising rivers for profit is not business, it is criminal, and it will be met with justice.”

"The FBI remains committed to identifying, investigating, and dismantling criminal organizations operating in New Mexico." said Justin A. Garris, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Division. "Mr. Benally's guilty plea demonstrates that those who engage in criminal activity will face real consequences. This case highlights the importance of collaboration between state, local, tribal, and federal agencies in delivering justice, ensuring the safety of our communities, and protecting the land within our tribal communities."

“The crimes here represent nothing less than foreign interests poisoning our land, wildlife, and people both up and down stream. Benally orchestrated the smuggling of illegal Chinese pesticides into the communities of New Mexico,” said Special Agent in Charge Kim Bahney of EPA's Criminal Investigation Division. “The San Juan River is a vital resource for the Navajo Nation, and a water of the United States. Benally must be held accountable for claiming it as his own.”

“I commend the cooperation of all the Tribal, Federal, and State law enforcement officials who worked tirelessly together across jurisdictions to bring an end to the dangerous marijuana farms that Dineh Benally had flagrantly operated both on and adjacent to the Navajo Nation,” said acting Navajo Nation Attorney General Colin Bradley.

Per the plea agreement, at sentencing, Benally faces a mandatory 15 years and up to life in prison and a drug-related fine not to exceed the greater of $10 million or twice the pecuniary gain to Benally and an environmental-related fine of $5,000 to $50,000 per day of violation. Upon his release from prison, Benally will be subject to not less than five years and up to life of supervised release.

Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison, Justin A. Garris, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, and Kim Bahney, Special Agent in Charge of the Dallas Area Office of the EPA Criminal Investigation Division, made the announcement today.

The FBI Albuquerque Field Office, the Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency investigated this case with the assistance of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Internal Revenue Service, and the Navajo Nation Police Department. In addition, the following law enforcement agencies participated in the law enforcement operation: Torrance County Sheriff’s Office, San Juan County Sheriff’s Office, Valencia County Sheriff’s Office, United States Border Patrol, Homeland Security Investigations, New Mexico Department of Justice, New Mexico State Police, and the FBI El Paso Field Office. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew McGinley, and Assistant United States Attorneys Eva Fontanez and Michael Pahl are prosecuting the case.