Jeddito man arrested for assault, resisting arrest

A Jeddito, Ariz., man is facing assault and resisting arrest charges after he had a close encounter with a Navajo Nation Police officer.

The incident occurred about 7:48 a.m. on Oct. 28 when a police officer went to the home of Elizando Tsosie, 37, and informed him that he had three warrants out for his arrest.

He yelled an obscenity and told the officer "I'm out of here." He then struck the officer in the face with his fist.

The officer then took off in pursuit and the two began fighting. The officer was forced to take out his pepper spray and sprayed the suspect but this had no effect. He then took out his Tazer and used that, ending the fight. Tsosie was arrested.

Missing person found

Ever since Sept. 20, when his sister filed a missing persons report, police were wondering what happened to Randall Anderson, 38, of Fruitland, N.M.

On Oct. 2, they found out.

Police officers were taken to a mesa about 3.1 miles east of milepost 104 just off of U.S. Highway 491 by Anderson's girlfriend, Henrietta Harvey, 29, of Shiprock.

She took them to a place where she and Anderson were drinking just before he was reported missing. There police found Anderson's severely decomposed body.

No cause of death was listed and police are still investigating the matter.

Jeddito brothers assaulted

Someone assaulted the Brown brothers of Jeddito, Ariz., on Oct. 31 but right now who that person was is still a mystery.

Police said they were told by Fernando Lee Brown, 23, that he and his brother, Quince Lee Brown, 33, were assaulted. Quince Brown was hit over the head with an unknown object.

Neither could say who the assailant was. Both were taken to the Hopi hospital in Polacca, Ariz., from where Quince was flown to Flagstaff for more medical treatment.

Dilkon man arrested for disorderly conduct

A Dilkon, Ariz., man was arrested for aggravated assault and disorderly conduct in connection to an altercation that took place on Oct. 30.

Police were called to the home of Felix Tsiniginnie in Dilkon about 8:15 a.m. because of reports of a fight between two women and a man.

When police got to the scene they were told that Robyn A. Peaches, 27, of Dilkon, was involved in a fight with Isaac Ray Yonnie, 18, and Jolisa Yonnie, 20, of Dilkon, tried to break it up.

During the fight, Isaac Yonnie reportedly grabbed a knife and cut Jolisa Yonnie on the right hand.

Police said they were also told that during the fight, Isaac Yonnie had also bitten the other two on their arms.

Reckless driver arrested

Another aggravated battery incident took place between Leupp, Ariz., and Birdsprings, Ariz., on Nov. 1.

The weapon in this case was a car being driven by Dewhite Tyler Brown, 26, of Chinle.

Police said that they had reports of a car being driven recklessly in the Leupp area and discovered that Brown had nearly driven one vehicle off the road near Leupp and had rammed into another car several times near Birdsprings.

The drivers in these cars were identified as Katherinne Fulton of Birdsprings and Clarence Bahe Sr. of Dilkon. No ages were given.

When Brown was stopped near Birdsprings, police said he was uncooperative and tried to slug the police officer.

He was charged with aggravated battery, threatening, DWI, reckless driving, obstruction of justice and assault.

Many Farms man sentenced for involuntary manslaughter

PHOENIX - Amos John, Jr., 42, of Many Farms, Ariz., was sentenced to three years in federal prison, according to the U.S. attorney's office.

John pleaded guilty Aug. 10, 2009, to a charge of involuntary manslaughter as a result of his role in a motor vehicle collision on Oct. 13, 2008, on the Navajo Nation that killed an adult man.

John admitted he was intoxicated when he drove his girlfriend's car from a dirt road into the northbound lane of U.S. Route 191, north of Chinle, and struck a truck traveling north. The victim, a passenger in the truck, was ejected from the vehicle and later pronounced dead at a local hospital.

Hopi officials seek deer poacher

KYKOTSMOVI, Ariz. - An adult mule deer buck was shot and killed and left to waste sometime between the evening of Oct. 31 and early Nov. 1, and Hopi officials are seeking the public's help in finding out who is responsible for the poaching.

The animal was shot with a small-caliber rifle on Howell Mesa along State Highway 264 at milepost 349.

"This is a malicious act and an example of a poacher's blatant disrespect for wildlife and disrespect to our Hopi cultural teachings," said wildlife technician Ernal Takala. "There was no reason to take this animal and leave it to waste."

Anyone with information is asked to call Hopi Resource Enforcement Services between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at 928-734-7341/7340. A reward is being offered for positive identification that leads to the arrest and conviction of the poacher. Calls will be confidential upon request.

"Please try to think back and remember if you were in the area, and may have seen or heard any conversation regarding the illegal taking," Takala said. "Maybe someone doesn't realize they are the key to solving this case."

Moenave man sentenced for domestic assault

PHOENIX - Yazzie Allen, 50, of Moenave, Ariz., was sentenced Nov. 2 to two years in federal prison, according to the U.S. attorney's office.

The prison term will be followed by a six-month placement in an inpatient alcohol rehabilitation program while on three years supervised release

Allen pleaded guilty Aug. 20, 2009, to a domestic assault which occurred on the Navajo Nation.

On Feb. 6, 2009, after spending most of the day drinking, Allen became enraged and assaulted his partner by pummeling her with his hands and feet causing serious injury. A family member of Allen's came to her aid which allowed the victim to escape.

Co-defendants Rene Ayllon Castaneda and Inigo Escobar-Escobar both pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge of aiding and abetting an alien to elude examination and inspection and were sentenced to 90 days in federal prison.

Mesa woman sentenced for theft

PHOENIX - Yolanda Enos, 46, of Mesa, Ariz., was sentenced Nov. 2 to two years in prison, according to the U.S. attorney's office

 She was also ordered to pay $649,675 in restitution and perform 100 hours of community service for the felony offense of theft in excess of $1,000 on an Indian reservation, according to the U.S. attorney's office.

Enos pleaded guilty Aug. 10, 2009.

At the time of sentencing, representatives of the family owned business, who were all victims of the offense, advised the court that the theft had caused two of the parents to exhaust over 30 years of their life's savings just keep the business going.

If the theft had not been discovered by an owner's son, the business may have been forced to close within a month of the discovery.

Not only were the victims hurt financially by the loss, they also told the court that they had been deeply hurt emotionally by Enos since they had treated her like a family member and taken her into their confidence.

Enos admitted that between Jan. 3, 2002, and Jan. 31, 2006, she stole approximately $649,675 while working as the office manager for Noline and Smith L.L.C., doing business as JR's Convenience Store, in Scottsdale, Ariz.  Enos admitted she accomplished the thefts while working as the trusted bookkeeper of her employer.

Her bookkeeping duties included the preparation of bank deposits that were to include the money collected in two cash registers that were cashed-out by two cashiers twice a day.

Enos took random amounts of money from the cashiers' envelopes during many days she worked in amounts ranging from approximately $50 to $4,400. Enos regularly took larger amounts on weekends when her employer took in more money.

During the time of the thefts, the convenience store's records indicated no significant losses or discrepancies on days Enos did not work.

The thefts were inadvertently discovered by the son of an owner in January 2006 after one of the bank deposits Enos had prepared was found to be $100 short. Until that day, Enos' employers had never audited her work.

Enos also stated that she could not recall the exact amount she had taken because she had not kept any records concerning her thefts.

At the time of sentencing, Enos was out of custody and under the court's supervision. Enos was ordered to self-surrender to the U.S. Marshals Service on Dec. 7, 2009.

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