Police report 14th exposure death of '09

N avajo Nation Police reported the 14th exposure fatality for the year with the death of a Shiprock man on March 26.

The victim was identified as Nelson Morris, 65.

His body was found in the community's western subdivision between two houses.

Police said alcohol may have been a factor in the death.

Nazlini man arrested for arson

A Nazlini, Ariz., man is under investigation for the arson of a mobile home and hogan in the Nazlini area.

Police were called to the scene of the fire about two miles west of the BIA school in Nazlini on March 21. By the time they arrived, both the mobile home and the hogan owned by Edison Wilson were engulfed in flames.

Witnesses told police that Aloysius Wilson, 20, had been seen before the fire striking windows behind the house using a metal pole. Witnesses said he had also confessed to them later that he had set the fire. He then fled the area.

Police were able to locate him later that night and arrested him. Alcohol was a factor in the incident, according to the police report, which also said that federal charges are pending.

Robbery in Burnside botched by clerk

Three men attempted to rob the Mustang station at Burnside, Ariz., on March 20.

They were identified as Nathan Thomas, 20, of Toyei, Ariz.; Tyre Hubbard, 23, of Ganado, Ariz.; and Orlando Emmett Tsosie, no age given, of Ganado.

According to police, the three walked up to the Mustang store in the evening and Thomas covered his face and walked into the store. The clerk questioned his identity and managed to get him to leave.

At that time the clerk locked the door and called police. A little later, the three men began banging on the door, demanding to be let in. They kept it up until police arrived at which time they fled on foot

Thomas and Hubbard were soon apprehended and Tsosie was arrested later. Federal charges are pending.

Police seize 211 pounds of marijuana

Tribal police seized 211 pounds of marijuana and a small quantity of cocaine after stopping a car on Interstate 40 near Sanders, Ariz., for speeding.

Police said after the stop, the officer noticed signs of criminal activity and received both verbal and written permission to search the car.

Using a K-9 officer, police soon found the marijuana and cocaine. The car was on its way from Phoenix to Nebraska.

The three occupants in the car, Nabia Medina, Marlini Varges and Lorenzo Vega, no age given, all from Phoenix, were turned over to the Apache County drug task force.

Sanostee man apparently shoots self

Police are trying to determine if charges are going to be filed against a Sanostee, N.M., man who allegedly tried to shoot himself on March 29.

Police were called to the residence of Darrell Benjamin, 31, because of reports of a shooting.

When they got to the residence, they found Benjamin seated in a chair in the kitchen with a bullet wound in the upper left chest. He was talking and alert.

Benjamin told police that he had shot himself because he "was pissed off." Police later learned that the shooting occurred after he had a heated argument with his girlfriend.

Police found a .22 caliber rifle next to the front door. Benjamin was transported to the Northern Navajo Medical Center for treatment.

Policeman shoots dog

A Navajo Nation police officer reported that he had to shoot and kill a dog in the Sanostee area on April 3.

The officer, whose name was not released, was assigned to go to a house in the Sanostee area because of a disturbance call. It was unclear on the police report who the owner of the house was.

When the officer got to the door, it was opened about 12 inches and a dog came out. He started barking and exposing his teeth and appeared ready to attack when the officer pulled out his gun and shot the dog in the head.

Police turn Ganado man over to Marine Corps

Police said that they turned over a Ganado, Ariz., man to the U.S. Marine Corps on March 24.

The man, identified as Wacey Smith, 40, had been arrested by Navajo Nation police for outstanding warrants.

When they did a routine background check, they learned that he was being sought by the military for desertion.

Parker man pleads guilty in ex's death

PHOENIX - Gilbert Holmes, 29, of Parker, Ariz., pleaded guilty April 3 to second-degree murder for killing a 40-year-old woman with whom he had a child, according to the U.S. attorney's office.

Sentencing for Holmes, a member of the Colorado River Indian Tribes, is set for June 29. Second-degree murder carries a maximum sentence of life in federal prison, a $250,000 fine or both.

On April 29, 2008, Holmes broke through the front window of the victim's home and went into her bedroom where he saw his daughter sleeping. Two other young children, sons of the victim, were also in the house that night.

Holmes assaulted the victim's boyfriend, who fought back. The victim screamed for her boyfriend to call the police and he left to make the call from a neighbor's house.

Holmes then attacked the victim, beating her on the head and face with a closet rod and trying to stab her with it. The rod shattered and he then stabbed her multiple times with a kitchen knife. She died a short time later of her injuries.

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