The U.S. Marshals Service filed a criminal charge Monday afternoon against Maria Guadalupe Baltazar, 36, of Lubbock. She was accused of lying to federal investigators during their search for Ernest Ray Zavala.
Zavala was mistakenly released from the Lubbock County Detention Center on June 23. On June 27, the marshals talked to Baltazar to ask about Zavala.
According to a criminal complaint, “She stated that she had not seen Zavala … and that she did not know where he was …”
Later she told marshals “she gave one of her friends $300 to take Zavala to Las Vegas, Nevada, where she was vacationing …”
Baltazar also claimed that Zavala was in Dallas.
The criminal complaint said, “Baltazar knews Zavala was actually in Lubbock and not Dallas because text messages between Baltazar and Zavala wanted Baltazar to get him a car in Lubbock.”
The complaint said Zavala did join Baltazar in Las Vegas. The complaint also said the two made it from Las Vegas to Friona when they parted ways. The marshals located Zavala in Hobbs on Sunday and he has since been returned to the Lubbock Co. Detention Center.
Officials have said Zavala could face more charges for trying to avoid re-apprehension.
The complaint did not say specifically how Baltazar might be related to Zavala but both are listed as having the same home address in jail booking records.
