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Pair approved for release on bond

PORTALES - Two people charged with conspiring in an armed robbery plot that left one Portales man dead were approved Thursday for release on bond. Two others charged with murder in connection with the incident remained in jail without bond on a pre-trial detention order.

On Friday morning, a grand jury indicted all four co-defendants on felony charges related to the April 7 shooting death in Portales of 35-year old Adam Holts.

Manuel Silva Jr., 23, and Korbin Baldridge, 19, were each indicted on charges of first-degree murder, armed robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, tampering with evidence and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Fabian Duran, 32, and Morgan Carmichael, 21, were each indicted on the third-degree felony charge of conspiracy to commit armed robbery. Carmichael was also indicted on charges of harboring or aiding a felon and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

On Tuesday in Roosevelt County, Judge Donna Mowrer approved pre-trial detention motions from the state for Silva and Baldridge, while similar hearings for Duran and Carmichael were continued to Thursday afternoon. By then, the state withdrew its pre-trial detention motions for those two in favor of requesting bonds with conditions of release.

Attorneys for Duran and Carmichael asked that their clients be released on their own recognizance. Portales attorney Chris Christensen said he disputed "the depth and the amount of planning that supposedly happened" with Duran and that he "question(s) the validity of the statements made against him by the other defendants." He also emphasized Duran's ties to the community.

Deputy District Attorney Jake Boazman said Duran was seen in the vicinity of Holts' camper trailer around the time that Silva and Baldridge allegedly entered the residence armed and fired two shots between them.

Assistant trial attorney Ira Shiflett of the Roswell public defender officer said Carmichael, who allegedly drove the get-away vehicle, cooperated with investigators and has two young children and no criminal history in the state.

Mowrer approved a $5,000 cash or surety bond for Duran, who left jail that night, and a $10,000 bond on Carmichael with the option of posting 10% to the court for release.

"The charges in this cause number are very serious," said the judge. "Ultimately someone lost their life as a result of some portions of this situation."

Among the conditions of release for Duran and Carmichael are that they not communicate in any fashion with witnesses or co-defendants in this case. Carmichael's brother, Baldridge, will remain in jail but she is forbidden even to communicate indirectly with him through their parents.

All four co-defendants will appear within coming weeks in Portales' district court, but dates had not been scheduled as of Saturday. Silva also has a preliminary hearing scheduled Thursday on an aggravated fleeing charge in Curry County, which he picked up from a vehicle and foot pursuit in Clovis while police attempted to serve his arrest warrant from the homicide investigation.

 
 
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