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Press Release

Enrolled member of Navajo Nation pleads guilty to sexual abuse of a minor in Indian Country

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico

            ALBUQUERQUE – Bryan Bull, 40, of Shiprock, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, pleaded guilty in federal court on Aug. 30 to two counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor in Indian Country. 

            According to court documents, on June 3, 2019, Bull and Jeremiah Elijah Jim, 31, of Teec Nos Pos, Arizona, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, used intimidation and force on then 14-year-old John Doe and sexually abused him.  The abuse took place in Shiprock on the Navajo Nation.

            Bull is currently in custody pending sentencing, which has not yet been scheduled.  By the terms of the plea agreement, Bull faces up to 18 years in prison. Jim pleaded guilty on April 5 and faces between 14 and 24 years in prison. A sentencing hearing for Jim is scheduled for Oct. 6.

            The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Nation Police Department. 

Updated August 31, 2021

Topics
Indian Country Law and Justice
Violent Crime
Press Release Number: 21-176