Standing Rock Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Prison for Abusive Sexual Contact

ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced today that Brandon Yazzie was sentenced to 17 years in prison. Yazzie, 30, of Standing Rock, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, pleaded guilty to two counts of abusive sexual contact on May 25, 2023.

According to court records, on September 22, 2021, the FBI received a referral from the City of Avondale Police Department, Avondale, Arizona. The referral documented the sexual assault of Jane Doe, a minor who was then under 12 years old, by Yazzie on multiple occasions between December 2020 and January 2021 at Yazzie’s residence in Standing Rock, New Mexico. Specifically, Yazzie engaged in sexual contact with the victim and afterward, told her “this never happened” with the intent that his acts would remain secret.

Upon his release from prison, Yazzie will be subject to 10 years of supervised release and must register as a sex offender.

The Gallup Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Avondale (Arizona) Police Department, Navajo Police Department and Department of Criminal Investigations. Assistant United States Attorney Alexander F. Flores is prosecuting the case.

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