Navajo Man Receives 52-Month Sentence for Federal Child Sex Abuse Conviction

ALBUQUERQUE—This morning, Eugene Charley, 65, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Vanderwagen, New Mexico, was sentenced to a 52-month term of imprisonment to be followed by five years of supervised release for his child sex abuse conviction. Charley will be required to register as a sex offender when he completes his prison sentence.

United States Attorney Kenneth J. Gonzales said that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) began investigating Charley after the Navajo Division of Social Services (NDSS) reported that Charley had allegedly assaulted a child. Charley has been in federal custody since his arrest on April 2, 2010 based on a criminal complaint charging him with abusive sexual contact. On June 24, 2010, Charlie was indicted on that same charge.

According to the criminal complaint, the NDSS reported to the FBI that an 8-year-old female student had disclosed to school authorities that Charley had touched her inappropriately. Subsequent investigation by the FBI and the Navajo Nation Department of Public Safety (NNDPS) revealed that, between December 1, 2009 and February 28, 2010, Charley sexually assaulted the child by touching her genitals. On February 2, 2011, Charley entered a guilty plea to the indictment.

This case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the NNDPS, Shiprock Division, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Presiliano Torrez and Kimberly A. Brawley.