Woman charged in remote compound case pleads guilty
Prosecutors seeking 12 to 15 years in prison for 40-year-old, who could also face fine of $250K
TAOS — A woman accused of masterminding a plot to lead four other adults and a group of children to carry out terrorist attacks on U.S. soil from a remote compound in Taos County pleaded guilty Friday to two charges in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque.
Court records show 40-yearold Jany Leveille entered guilty pleas to charges of conspiracy to commit an offense against the U.S. and possession of a firearm while unlawfully in the U.S.
In exchange, prosecutors dropped five other charges that had been filed against her, including counts related to murder, terrorism and kidnapping.
Prosecutors are seeking a sentence of between 12 and 15 years in a federal penitentiary for Leveille, who could also face a fine up to $250,000.
After receiving intelligence from federal agencies and a tip from a Georgia detective in 2018, a team from the Taos County Sheriff’s Office arrested Leveille and four other adults at the squalid compound where they were living near Amalia, not far from the Colorado border.
During the raid, deputies found 11 children, whom investigators say were severely malnourished.
Investigators also said they found hundreds of rounds of ammunition, firearms, a shooting range and a 40-yard-long tunnel, where they discovered the body of a 3-year-old boy who had been reported missing in 2017.
Prosecutors also said searches of the compound uncovered Leveille’s journal, which described how the group was plotting to train the 11 children to carry out attacks against schools, a hospital, banks and government buildings. According to the investigation, Leveille claimed she was receiving messages from God.
By accepting Friday’s plea agreement, Leveille admits she and the other four adults charged in the plot gathered 11 guns and ammunition in Georgia in December 2017 and transported the supplies to New Mexico in Leveille’s car. At the time, Leveille, a Haitian national, was living in the U.S. with an expired visa.
Leveille was found incompetent to stand trial in 2019, but was found competent last year, according to court records.
Cases against the four other adults are still pending in U.S. District Court.