Woman accused of stealing $14,000 in cash and a firearm from relative

• Misti Smith, 46, is accused of third-degree felony count of larceny (more than $2,500 but not more than $20,000) and a fourth-degree felony count of larceny of a firearm.
• Smith said she spent about $8,000 on drugs and living expenses.
• She is being held at the county jail with a no-bond hold. An Aug. 10 hearing is set in Aztec District Court regarding her conditions of release.

FARMINGTON — A San Juan County woman was recently arrested on five outstanding warrants, then accused of stealing $14,000 in cash and a rifle, according to court documents.

Misti Smith, 46, faces a third-degree felony count of larceny and a fourth-degree felony count of larceny of a firearm, according to the criminal complaint. She did not have legal representation on Aug. 1, according to court records.

A San Juan County Sheriff's Office deputy was dispatched on July 9 to a residence on County Road 4990 east of Bloomfield to investigate a report of a stolen firearm.

A woman said Smith took the Winchester Model 70 .300 Win Mag bolt action rifle from the house.

The woman added she has Smith's phone while the defendant was in jail and it had photos of the gun cabinet and all the guns inside.

The next day on July 10, a deputy was dispatched to the same residence for a larceny report.

The woman told the deputy Smith stole about $14,000 in cash from a safe in the residence.

A relative of the alleged victim on July 19 reached out to deputies after she had a conversation with Smith on Facebook Messenger.

A review of the messages showed Smith admitting to taking the rifle, according to court documents.

On the same day, a detective sergeant discovered he was driving behind Smith. She had a suspended license and a suspended registration on the pickup truck she was driving.

The vehicle was pulled over for a traffic stop and sealed pending a search warrant. During execution of the warrant, the rifle was found along with $2,100 in cash.

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Smith was interviewed on July 29 in the San Juan County Adult Detention Center and claimed to have only taken $10,000 in cash and the rifle.

She said she spent about $8,000 on drugs and living expenses.

The defendant had five failure to appear warrants for three drug-related cases, one alleged fraud case and one alleged embezzlement case, according to jail records.

She is being held at the county jail with a no-bond hold. An Aug. 10 hearing is set for Aztec District Court regarding her conditions of release.

Smith's preliminary hearing for the alleged larcenies is set for the morning of Aug. 6 in Aztec Magistrate Court.

Joshua Kellogg covers breaking news for The Daily Times. He can be reached at 505-564-4627 or via email at jkellogg@daily-times.com.

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