An enrolled member of the Navajo Nation from Sheep Springs, N. M. pleaded guilty June 3 to committing second degree murder in Indian Country in July 2015.

In its release June 9, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said 21-year-old Mathias Neal and an accomplice got into a physical altercation with John Doe while at a chapter house in San Juan County on the Navajo Nation.

In the plea agreement it said Neal punched and kicked the victim, while he was on the ground, and hit him with brass knuckles and rocks to his head and throat, causing fatal injuries.

Neal admitted he was aware that Doe tried to run and was not fighting back.

As a result of the beating, Doe died at the scene and was...

IT WAS THERE A MINUTE AGO

Thoreau, May 22

One Thoreau man noticed his son’s truck was missing after he looked outside his window and didn’t see it one Saturday morning.

On May 22, around 7:07 am, McKinley County Sheriff’s Deputy Ivan Tsethlikai Jr. was dispatched to #219 State Highway 122 in Thoreau after a caller said a truck had been stolen.

Tsethlikai met with the Thoreau man who made the call, who explained that his son’s red Dodge Pickup truck had been stolen from his front yard between 6 am and 6:40 am that morning. He stated that his grandson had parked the truck in front of his house the night before, and that all the entry gates had been locked. But he acknowledged...

Roy Jesus

May 24, 9:26 pm

DWI

McKinley County Sheriff’s Deputy Terence Willie was traveling westbound on Highway 264 near Tse Bonito when he tracked a silver Chevy Silverado traveling 65 mph in a 45-mph zone. He turned to follow the vehicle and conducted a traffic stop.

There were two passengers in the car when Willie approached the vehicle. He met the driver, Roy Jesus, 32, of Fort Defiance, Ariz., and requested his documentation. Willie noted a strong smell of alcohol coming from inside the vehicle and Jesus admitted he had smoked some marijuana about two hours prior to driving and also consumed three 12-oz. bottles of Samuel Adams beforehand.

Jesus agreed to take the standard...

Statewide, NM — During the Memorial Day holiday, the New Mexico State Police participated in the Combined Accident Reduction Effort operation across all roadways within the state. The goal of the traffic initiative is to increase motorist safety and reduce the number of crashes through a strong law enforcement presence.

Because of the increased volume of traffic during the holiday, NMSP increased its patrol presence during this initiative on roadways throughout all State Police districts on the busiest travel days of the Memorial Day weekend, specifically May 29, through May 31.

The operation resulted in State Police officers issuing over 1,800 traffic citations (116 citations were...