Carnegie Man Charged with Premeditated Murder in Indian Country

OKLAHOMA CITY – A federal grand jury has charged ISAIAH WHITEFOX REDBIRD, 34, of Carnegie, Oklahoma, with premeditated murder and assault with the intent to commit murder, announced U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Downing.

According to an indictment returned by a federal grand jury yesterday, Redbird deliberately killed a person by striking him on the head with a blunt force instrument on September 11, 2018, in Indian Country.  He is charged in a separate count with assaulting a person identified as K.R. on the same day with the intent to commit murder.

An affidavit filed in federal court on November 28, 2018, alleges the Chief of the Carnegie Police Department discovered K.R. walking on a street in Carnegie on the morning of September 12, 2018, with severe head injuries.  K.R. could not remember how she sustained her injuries.  According to the affidavit, law enforcement discovered the body of K.R.’s boyfriend, Byron Tongeamah Jr., also known as "Subee," later that morning in the carport of an abandoned residence in which they had been sleeping.  The abandoned residence is in Indian Country, and Tongeamah and K.R. are both Indians.

Two witnesses reported they had seen Redbird near the abandoned residence on the night of September 11.  Further investigation by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Federal Bureau of Investigation led to a residence at which Redbird allegedly attempted to burn and then buried his clothing soon after Tongeamah’s death.

Redbird was arrested in Arizona on September 26, 2018, for an unrelated probation violation.  He has been in federal custody since that time.

If found guilty of premeditated murder, Redbird faces a mandatory punishment of life in prison.  If convicted of assault with intent to commit murder, he could be sentenced to up to twenty years in prison and up to five years of supervised release.  He could also be fined up to $250,000 on each count.

This case is a result of an investigation by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Federal Bureau of Investigation—Oklahoma City Field Office, and the Carnegie Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brandon Hale and Jason Harley are prosecuting the case.

The public is reminded that these charges are merely allegations and that the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.  Reference is made to public filings for more information.