TOP STORY>>30 minutes of Spice: Airman Montoya’s story

By Airman 1st Class Regina Agoha
19th Airlift Wing Public Affairs

“About two or three months ago, I was called in my first sergeant’s office. I didn’t really know what was going on. When I got there, there were two other guys in the room. ‘We’re going to go for a ride,’ someone said, and they took us to the Office of Special Investigation. There, we were individually questioned”.

Airman Basic Adrian Montoya, a 19th Logistic Readiness Squadron aircraft services technician, was found guilty for using spice.

Montoya didn’t fail a urinalysis test nor was he caught in the act. In fact, he hadn’t used spice in almost two years. Montoya’s name was given to OSI by another Airman. And when questioned, he confessed.

“I lost all my stripes; I was a Senior Airman,” said Montoya. “I got 30 days extra duty, a two on my Enlisted Progress Report, and a possible, more than likely discharge that’s still pending”.

Along with those consequences, for over a month now, Montoya has been speaking to Airmen at First Term Airman Center every other Thursday; he’s also done commander’s calls and Airman Leadership School briefs. At these events, where there are various Airmen ranging from E-1 to O-5, Montoya tells his story.

“I tell them how I was a Senior Airman Below the Zone winner, an Airman with fives on all of my EPRs, and a really good Airman,” Montoya said. “I tell them how something from my past came back. It came back and bit me in the butt. I tell them about my consequences. This is a live, real story”.

Montoya recalls himself as a first term Airman, listening to countless lectures that he believed to be false and made-up stories. He said he feels that his story is more touching and can reach Airman because it’s real and it’s happening in the present.

The decisions that Montoya made two years ago are still affecting the life that he has now.

“I wasn’t married at the time, and now I am,” he said. “My wife has to pay for what I did. She has to work another job now. Getting a reduction from E-4 to E-1 was a huge cut in our pay. We have to decide if we’re going to stay here or find another job somewhere else”.

Montoya and his wife are mentally, physically and financially preparing for the real possibility of an administrative discharge with a less than honorable characterization.. The situation that Montoya is now faced with has caused him to now be very careful of the company he keeps.

“I definitely watch who I hang out with,” he said. “My decision-making has changed since then. Even with the peer pressure, I knew it was wrong. The Air Mobility Command had a general order out, and I knew I was wrong back then. I think things through now”.

Montoya, who only used spice that one time, urges all Airmen to follow the rules.

“If it’s not tobacco, don’t smoke it; if you’re not 21, don’t’ drink it,” said Montoya. “The rules are there for a reason. My wife and I did research on spice, and there are some bad side effects associated with it”.

Montoya acknowledges his mistakes, accepts his consequences and does his part to make sure other Airmen don’t make a mistake that can lead to similar or worse consequences.

“If I could change those 30 minutes of my life, I would,” he said. “I get emotional when I speak to Airmen, especially in the small FTAC classes because I know they’re listening. If I can’t save my career, hopefully I can save one other.”