Farmington, NM – The Farmington Police Department recently discovered a number of items that were unaccounted for from their evidence room. The discovery was made on Tuesday, October 14 when an officer inquired about an evidence package containing prescription medication. When staff realized that the prescription drugs were unaccounted for, they immediately notified administration. A team was assigned to secure the evidence room and FPD detectives opened a criminal investigation. There is a total of 4,200 items in narcotics to be audited; 1,900 of those items have been audited thus far. In currency, there is approximately 300 items; this audit has been completed and found 4 items to be in question. Two of the items were located in the wrong area and three had been tampered with and removed. “At this time, we know that 34 cases with 38 bags of evidence have been tampered with and evidence has been removed. We have identified the suspect as Ashley Goodvoyce, who is one of our evidence technicians. Ms. Goodvoyce has been with the department for six years and has been the evidence technician for over one year. Based on her statements and our investigation to date, this only began following the last audit in April 2014.” – Chief Steve Hebbe

The findings occurred prior to an audit which was scheduled for the same week. FPD regularly conducts audits, as required by CALEA accreditation standards, of items seized as evidence to ensure accountability. The evidence room contains approximately 14,000 items. “Our investigation will continue until we know that all evidence is accounted for.” – Chief Steve Hebbe

A team of FPD investigators has been working throughout the week to maintain the integrity of the remaining evidence in the storage facility. Active cases which may be affected are being reviewed. “An incident of this nature can have irreparable effects on our cases. And, unfortunately, this also reflects upon the 165 other people that work hard daily, and are dedicated to the citizens of Farmington. We have been in communication with the District Attorney’s Office, who will take the lead in contacting defense attorneys from affected cases. ”Chief Steve Hebbe

Ms. Goodvoyce has cooperated with investigators. No other personnel were involved. “This has been a very difficult week for the employees of the Farmington Police Department. This represents a significant betrayal of trust that the department has placed in Ms. Goodvoyce. We also recognize that the community’s trust in us is hurt by incidents such as these. We are doing everything we can to find the exact extend of the breach and are improving our policies to prevent future incidents.”

Twenty-eight-year-old Goodvoyce is being charged with embezzlement, tampering with public records, possession of a controlled substance, and fraudulently obtaining a controlled substance. Her bond has been set at $150,000. Ms. Goodvoyce has been placed on leave without pay.