Navajo man charged with second-degree murder in Indian Country

            ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Isaiah Augustine Bob, 36, of Montezuma Creek, Utah, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, appeared in federal court in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on July 27 for an initial appearance on an indictment charging him with second-degree murder in Indian Country.

            According to the indictment, on Dec. 4, 2020, Bob killed a man in McKinley County, New Mexico, on the Navajo Nation. Bob was arrested in Oklahoma and transported back to the District of New Mexico. He is currently in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for July 30. If convicted, Bob faces up to life in prison. 

            An indictment is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

            The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Nation Department of Public Safety.  Assistant United States Attorney Novaline D. Wilson is prosecuting the case.