Fort Yates Man Sentenced on Assault and Burglary Charges

On April 29, 2013, Lionel R. Jewett, 21, of Fort Yates, North Dakota, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Daniel L. Hovland on two counts of burglary, a count of assault with intent to commit murder, and two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon. Jewett pleaded guilty to the charges on August 20, 2012.

Judge Hovland sentenced Jewett to serve six years in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Jewett was ordered to pay $500 in special assessments to the Crime Victim’s Fund and $12,041.17 in restitution.

On March 30, 2011, Jewett and a co-defendant broke into a garage owned by the Catholic church in Fort Yates and took a vehicle, tools, and some money. Jewett was also involved with a second burglary at the church on October 15, 2011, in which tools were stolen.

In a separate incident on January 16, 2012, Jewett attacked two women in the Fort Yates area. Jewett assaulted the first woman by using a garden hoe and a fence post pounder. Jewett also kicked the first woman and a second woman while wearing shoes.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs-Standing Rock Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Standing Rock Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Delorme prosecuted the cases.