ALBUQUERQUE — The New Mexico Attorney General’s Office announced Monday that it’s taking over an investigation into the alleged destruction of e-mails and other electronic records within the Dona Ana County district attorney’s office.
Attorney general and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gary King said it appears the disappearance of the information was not a clerical error, but was the planned destruction of state records.
King made the statement before swiftly leaving the news conference for another event. He answered no questions.
His general counsel, David Pederson, said the investigation has only begun, and it will take time to determine whether there were any criminal violations, such as tampering with state records.
Because the investigation involves current and past employees of the district attorney’s office, Pederson said the attorney general was asked by 3rd Judicial District Attorney Mark D’Antonio to step in.
The flap over the e-mails stemmed from a request by the state Democratic Party for public records related to then-District Attorney Susana Martinez’s first campaign for governor. D’Antonio’s office said the records request could not be fulfilled because e-mails were missing and apparently destroyed.
King, a Democrat, is running against Martinez.
