Navajo Man from Hogback, N.M, Sentenced to Nine Years for Federal Assault Conviction

ALBUQUERQUE – Gary Begay, 24, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation who resides in Hogback, N.M., was sentenced this morning in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 108 months in prison for his conviction on an assault charge.  Begay will be on supervised release for three years after completing his prison sentence.

Begay was arrested in June 2016, on an indictment charging him with sexual assault and assault resulting in serious bodily injury.  According to the indictment, Begay committed the crimes on March 14, 2015, on the Navajo Indian Reservation in San Juan County, N.M.

On Feb. 16, 2017, Begay pled guilty to Count 2 of the indictment charging him with assault resulting in serious bodily injury.  In entering the guilty plea, Begay admitted assaulting the victim by striking the victim with his fists and a bottle, breaking the victim’s teeth and causing serious bodily injury to the victim. 

This case was investigated by the Farmington office of the FBI, the Navajo Nation Department of Public Safety and the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Spindle prosecuted the case.