Woman punched at Zodiac Bar

By Mike Marino
Cibola County Bureau

GRANTS — The ads are everywhere. Don’t drink and drive; take the keys away from someone who has been drinking. It’s good advice, but sometimes comes with unexpected consequences. The Cibola County Sheriff’s department reported a case occurred in a bar on Oct. 3.

“We had a report of aggravated assault that happened in San Fidel by the Zodiac Bar. According to the report the assault happened just after midnight at 12:20 a.m.,” according to Sgt. Steve Marquez of the Cibola County Sheriff’s Department.

The victim, Leona Garcia, 34, reported that she was punched in the mouth by Darwin Ballo, 22, when she tried to stop him from driving after he had been drinking,” he said. Ballo was arrested for assault in the incident.

Other reports
In Plano Colorado near Bluewater Village a female was attacked by a loose dog.

“Susan McKinney reported that on October 3 around 6 p.m. she was attacked by a dog running loose in the neighborhood. Fortunately there were no flesh wounds suffered by her, but her pants were ripped,” Marquez said.

The dog was running loose and not tied up on the property. When questioned the owner said that they try to keep it tied up but somehow it gets loose. The owner did get the animal back and Animal Control will be contacting them for further investigation in the matter at a later date.

On Oct. 10, the sheriff’s department received a report of a home burglary in Cubero. Walter Meach reported that his front door had been broken into and the thieves apparently made off jewelry and some cash. The burglary occurred sometime between the hours of 5 a.m. and 6 p.m. There are no suspects at this point, and an investigation is pending in the matter.

If anyone has any information regarding crimes committed in the area, the public can contact Crimestoppers at (505) 287-8400.