Portales woman gets 18 years

PORTALES — A Portales woman was sentenced Monday to 18 years in prison on charges of kidnapping, burglary and aggravated battery.

Esperanza Tarango, 24, was found guilty in December by a Roosevelt County jury. She will be required to serve at least 85% of the term.

According to court records, a man at Roosevelt General Hospital told county sheriff’s deputies he was taken to a remote location in the country by two males and a female. The man said his wrists were bound and he was beaten with a hatchet-type instrument, burned on his back by an unknown object and shot in the chest with a pellet or BB gun.

Deputy District Attorney Quentin Ray, assisted by Mitchell Mender, sought a maximum sentence of 24 years. District Judge Donna Mowrer ran the three charges concurrent for the 18-year sentence.

Jonathan Miller of Albuquerque represented Tarango. He said an appeal is planned on the sufficiency of the evidence.

“She’s an amazing young woman who’s had a very rough life,” Miller said of Tarango, “and I’m glad the judge did not run all of the counts consecutively.”