County says ex-sheriff fails to pay judgment
Solano, who pleaded guilty to fraud in 2011, owes $20,000 in restitution
A Santa Fe County judge in 2011 ordered former Sheriff Greg Solano to pay the county $24,643.33 after he was convicted of fraud for selling county-owned items on eBay during his time in office.
Seven years later, Solano still owes almost $20,000, according to a court document filed last week by the County Commission.
The county filed a petition in District Court to revive the 2011 judgment against Solano, saying he hasn’t made a payment on the outstanding debt since July 2017.
Solano told on Tuesday that the filing was a formality to keep the restitution agreement alive while he continues to make payments. He confirmed that he still owes about $19,000 in restitution, but he disputes the allegation that he hasn’t paid since 2017.
Solano said he paid the county early this year, and again as recently as this month. He acknowledged he has been “sporadic in payments,” in part, he said, because his family has accrued medical costs this year that set him back financially.
“I’m not denying that I owe the debt,” Solano said. “I’ve been paying it as much as I can, when I can.”
Solano, who was elected sheriff in 2002 and re-elected in 2006, resigned in 2010, admitting to stealing items from the Sheriff ’s Office and selling them for personal gain.
He later was arrested on embezzlement charges alleging he sold hundreds of county-owned items, including bulletproof vests and holsters.
Solano, who pleaded guilty to five counts of fraud, was sentenced to three months in jail, nine months of GPS monitoring and multiple years of probation. He also was ordered to pay the nearly $25,000 in restitution.
For a time, Solano tried to use his woodworking skills to pay off his debts. In 2012, reported he was selling handmade clocks, religious items and poker-chip trays to help pay off what he owed.
Today, Solano works as a property manager, he said, but he still does woodworking on the side.