Police Report | Navajo Police Department seek help finding person of interest

BÉÉSHBITÓ VALLEY, Ariz.

A person was killed with a sharp instrument March 26, 2023.

The incident happened around 9 p.m. in Bééshbitó Valley, Arizona. The Navajo Police Criminal Investigations Division has a person of interest who is considered armed and dangerous.

If anyone has any information on the suspect’s whereabouts, Thurman Yazzie immediately call the Dilkon Police District or the Navajo police district in one’s area.

Yazzie currently has shoulder-length hair. This is an isolated incident in the area. However, if anyone sees Yazzie, do not approach him.

Anyone with information regarding Thurman Yazzie is asked to call the Dilkon Police District at 928-657-8075.

Navajo PD conducts drug and alcohol enforcement operation

CHINLE – The Navajo Police Department’s Special Operation Division conducted another successful two-day drug and alcohol enforcement operation from March 23-24. It was focused on disrupting and deterring the trafficking and distribution of drugs and alcohol (bootlegging) within the Chinle community.

This operation was a joint, collaborative effort amongst NPD’s Proactive Crime Enforcement Unit, K-9 Patrol Unit, Bureau of Indian Affairs-Office of Justice Services Division of Drug Enforcement, Arizona Department of Public Safety, and Navajo County Sheriff’s Office.

The two-day operation yielded the following results:

• Four arrests (drug- and alcohol-related)
• One arrest (federal warrant)
• 56 enforcement stops
• Firearms seized
• Methamphetamine and marijuana seized

“Outstanding effort by NPD’s Specialty Units and partners (BIA-OJS DDE, AZDPS, and NCSO),” said Lt. Rory Atcitty of NPD’s Special Operations Division. “Their hard work, dedication, and commitment is certainly saving lives and keeping our Navajo communities safe.”

NPD’s Proactive Crime Enforcement Unit continues proactively addressing the concerns of illegal criminal activity involving the manufacturing, distributing, and transporting of drugs and/or alcohol (bootlegging), including other major violent crimes and gang activity throughout the Navajo Nation.

Submit tips to the following email: Tips4NPDPACE@navajo-nsn.gov.

Woman recovered after vehicle swept away in flood water

HOLBROOK, Ariz. – The Navajo County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center on March 23 received a call around 10:48 a.m. reporting an incident of a vehicle being swept off a dirt road by flood water.

A Holbrook couple was traveling on Hutch Road, about 16 miles west of State Route 377. The caller reported his 64-year-old wife was missing. The sheriff’s office immediately dispatched patrol deputies, the Navajo County Search and Rescue, Hashknife Sheriff’s Posse, Joseph City Fire, Holbrook EMS, and the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s Air Rescue Unit to search the area for the missing woman.

The husband reported that he and his wife were in a Jeep crossing, “Seymour’s Crossing,” a wash, the night before. The husband said that the swift-moving water swept the Jeep from the dirt roadway and began to push the vehicle downstream, where it came to rest.

After an hour, the occupants crawled out of the vehicle and got to the riverbank, out of the water. While trying to find help, the couple was separated in the dark. The husband was found by local citizens and was taken to safety. He called the sheriff’s office, reporting his wife was still missing.

Subsequently, the woman was found deceased about a half mile downstream from the Jeep and about 200 feet from the water.

This is an ongoing investigation.

Fatal crash on Rim Road

HOLBROOK, Ariz. – The Navajo County Sheriff’s Office on March 25 received a call at about 4:09 p.m. regarding a single-vehicle crash on Rim Road at milepost 1 in Pinetop, Arizona.

The reporting party was a 13-year-old male involved in the crash. He advised the car went off the road and crashed into a tree. When deputies arrived, they learned the vehicle had two other occupants. Coyiah Shawn Bennett, 31, and Michandi Bennett, 19, both of Whiteriver, Arizona, had succumbed to their injuries from the crash. The juvenile was transported to a medical facility with minor injuries.

Officers from Pinetop-Lakeside Police Department, the U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement, and the Pinetop Fire Department emergency responders responded to the scene. The Arizona Department of Public Safety assisted with the scene documentation. The Navajo County Sheriff’s Office is conducting the investigation.

Apprehending ‘Mr. Yellow’

KAYENTA – The Kayenta Police District last Thursday arrested Mr. Christopher Yellow during a warrant service operation.

The arrest was a joint effort between the Navajo Police Department’s SWAT team and K-9 Patrol Unit, special agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs-Office of Justice Services, the Arizona Department of Public Safety, and the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office. Yellow was wanted on a federal arrest warrant and was taken into custody without incident.

“As with any SWAT operation including warrant services, the goal is to provide protection and safety for innocent civilians and police personnel while reducing the probability of serious injury or death to all persons involved in a high-risk critical incident,” said Lt. Rory Atcitty of NPD’s Special Operations Division. “In this case, we achieved our collective goal of apprehending Mr. Yellow safely and without incident. Apprehending Mr. Yellow was (highly important) based on the severity of an ongoing investigation.”

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